alifornia 
jional 


THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


BISHOP  N.  F.  S.  GRUNDTVIG 


^VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 
IN  EUROPE 


REPORT  TO   THE   COMMERCIAL 
CLUB   OF   CHICAGO 

BY^X'' 

EDWIN   G.  COOLEY 


VOLUME  TWO 


1915 

THE  COMMERCIAL  CLUB  OF  CHICAGO 
CHICAGO 


COPYRIGHT  1915 


THE  COMMERCIAL  CLUB  OF  CHICAGO 

Trade  Supplied  by 
A.  C.  McCi.um;  &  Co.,  CHICAGO 


Ed.  -  Psych. 
Library 


C77 

PREFACE  V  9- 


THIS  report  describes  observations  and  experiences  in 
European  vocational  schools  during  the  winter  1913- 
14.    A  previous  trip,  reported  in  an  earlier  volume, 
was  devoted  mainly  to  the  vocational  schools  of  Germany, 
Austria,  and  Switzerland.     Most  of  the  investigation,  too, 
was  limited  to  industrial  and  commercial  schools.    Compara- 
tively little  attention  was  given  to  agricultural  instructions. 

The  second  trip  was  for  the  express  purpose  of  sup- 
plementing his  earlier  observations  and  experiences  by 
visiting  the  vocational  schools  in  other  European  countries, 
with  special  attention  to  agricultural  schools  of  lower  grade. 
With  this  object  in  view,  Ireland,  England,  Holland,  Den- 
mark, Sweden,  Norway,  and  Germany  were  visited,  and 
agricultural  instruction  was  especially  studied. 

In  the  earlier  report  the  author  emphasized  the  im- 
portance of  supplemental  welfare  work  for  young  people 
in  attendance  at  vocational  schools.  The  experiences  of  the 
past  year  in  European  countries  have  shown  still  more 
clearly  the  importance  of  this  work.  The  vocational  school 
should  be  the  center  of  a  systematic  movement  having  for 
its  object  the  promotion  of  the  welfare  of  the  industrial 
youth.  No  narrow  scheme,  striving  merely  for  technical 
efficiency,  satisfies  the  demands  of  the  present.  The  voca- 
tional school  as  well  as  the  ordinary  cultural  school  must 
minister  to  the  "  whole  boy,"  and  must  center  in  his  interests 
and  his  development  rather  than  in  the  demands  of  industry. 

Finally,  the  importance  of  establishing  these  vocational 
schools  under  the  best  conditions  for  success  has  led  the 
author  to  study  especially  the  problem  of  control  and  su- 
pervision as  it  has  been  worked  out  not  merely  in  Germany 
but  in  the  other  countries  visited. 

[31 


1839812 


ACKNOWLEDGMENT 

THE  thanks  of  the  author  are  due  to  the  following 
persons:  Mr.  George  Fletcher,  Assistant  Secretary 
for  Technical  Instruction  in  Ireland;  Mr.  James  R. 
Campbell,  Assistant  Secretary  for  Agriculture  in  Ireland; 
Mr.  George  Stephenson,  Director  of  Albert  Agricultural 
College,  Glasnevin,  Ireland;  Dr.  von  Hoek,  Director-Gen- 
eral of  Agriculture,  The  Hague,  Holland;  Mr.  J.  Heemstra, 
Agricultural  Expert  in  Holland;  Professor  Bernard  Boggild, 
Royal  Agricultural  College  of  Denmark;  Hon.  Maurice 
Francis  Egan,  American  Minister  to  Denmark;  Mr.  P.  T. 
Berg,  American  Vice-Consul  General,  Stockholm;  Dr. 
Oldenburg,  Ministry  of  Agriculture,  Domains  and  Forests, 
Berlin;  Dr.  von  Seefeld,  of  the  Ministry  of  Commerce  and 
Industry,  Berlin;  Dr.  Heinrich  Back,  Director  of  Industrial 
School  of  Frankfort  on  the  main;  Dr.  Hjalmar  Lundbohm 
of  Stockholm;  Dr.  George  Kerschensteiner,  Director  of 
Schools  of  Munich,  and  Dr.  Fritz  Zollinger,  Secretary  of 
Education  in  the  Canton  of  Zurich,  Switzerland. 

The  author  wishes  to  express  his  special  indebtedness 
to  Miss  Edith  Rickert  for  her  assistance  in  preparing  this 
report,  and  to  thank  the  members  of  the  Commercial  Club 
for  enabling  him  to  complete  his  investigation.  It  is  hoped 
that  the  two  reports  published  by  the  Club  will  furnish  ade- 
quate information  to  people  interested  in  the  important 
subjects  of  European  experience  in  vocational  schools. 

EDWIN  G.  COOLEY. 

Dec.  1,  1914. 


[5] 


BIBLIOGRAPHY 

1 .  APPEL,  JACOB.     The  Danish  High  Schools. 

2.  BREDSDORF,  THOMAS.    The  People's  High  School. 

3.  CAMPBELL,   J.    R.     Agricultural   Instruction   with   Special 

Reference  to  Ireland. 

4.  CLAASEN,  W.     Die  deutsche  Landwirtschaft. 

5.  FLETCHER,  GEORGE.    A  Decade  of  'Technical  Instruction  in 

Ireland. 

6.  FRIBERG,  MAIKKI.    Die  Volkshochschulen  im  Norden. 

7.  FROST,  J.     Agrarverfassung    und    Landwirtschaft    in    den 

Niederlanden. 

8.  GREIG,  R.  B.     Report  on  Farm  and  Agricultural  Schools 

and  Colleges  in  France,  Germany,  and  Belgium. 

9.  HAGGARD,  H.  RIDER.     Rural  Denmark. 

10.  HOLLMANN,   A.   H.     Die  danische   Volkshochschule.     Die 

Entwicklung  der  danischen  Landwirtschaft. 

11.  JOHNSON,  J.  V.    The  People's  High  Schools  in  Sweden. 

12.  LEMBKE,  FRAULEIN.     Die  danische  Volkshochschule. 

13.  LEXIS,  W.    Das  technische  Unterrichtswessen  im  deutschen 

Reich. 

14.  MADSEN,    Dr.    RONBERG.      Grundtvig   und    die   danischen 

Volkshochschule. 

15.  OLDENBURG,    DR.     Landwirtschaftliche   Jahrbiicher,    Band 

XXXIX. 

16.  POVLSEN,  ALFRED.     The  Danish  Popular  High  School. 

17.  SCHILLINGER,  C.     Die  Entwicklung  der  Landwirtschaft  im 

Kreise  Rheinbach. 

18.  SCOTT,  J.  W.  ROBINSON.    A  Free  Farmer  in  a  Free  State. 

19.  SIERCK,  H.     Jugendpflege. 

20.  WARTENMEILER,  FRITZ.     Die  Entwicklung  N.  F.  S.  Grund- 

tvig's  zum  Vater  der  Volkshochschule. 

21.  WIEMANN,  W.     Jugendpflege. 

22.  Royal  Agricultural  Society  of  Denmark.    The  Danish  Agri- 

culture. 

23.  Die  deutsche  Fortbildungsschule. 

24.  Jahrbuch  des  deutschen  Verein  fiir  das  Fortbildungsschul- 

wessen,  1913. 

25.  Report  of  the  Royal   Swedish   Commission   on   Industrial 

Education. 

[7] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


26.  Reports  of  Agricultural  and  Industrial  Schools  of  Ireland, 

Holland,    Sweden,    Norway,    Denmark,    Germany,    and 
Switzerland. 

27.  Reports  of  the  Society  for  the  People's  Welfare.     Berlin. 

28.  Tenth  and  Twelfth  Annual  Reports  of  the  Department  of 

Agriculture  and  Technical  Instruction  for  Ireland. 

29.  Handbook  for  the  use  of  the  Local  Advisory  Committee  for 

Juvenile  Employment  in  London.     1913. 

30.  Annual  Report  on  the  Distribution  of  Grants  for  Agricul- 

tural Education  and  Research,  England.     1912-1913. 

31.  Memorandum  on  the  Principles  and  Methods  of  Rural  In- 

struction, Board  of  Education,  England.     1911. 

32.  Kalendar  of  East  Anglian  Institute  of  Agriculture,  Chelms- 

ford,  England.     1913-1914. 

33.  Scheme   of   Agricultural    Education   to   be  carried   out   at 

the  County  Council  Farm  at  Hutton,  Preston,  England. 
1914-1915. 

34.  First  Report  of  the  Board  of  Agriculture  for  Scotland  for  the 

nine  months  ending  December  31,  1912. 


[8] 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 

I.    INTRODUCTION 11 

II.     BISHOP  GRUNDTVIG  AND  THE  PEOPLE'S  HIGH 

SCHOOLS        23 

III.  AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION  IN  DENMARK    .  38 

IV.  AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION  IN  IRELAND  .      .  53 
V.    INDUSTRIAL  INSTRUCTION  IN  IRELAND      .      .  80 

VI.     AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION  IN  HOLLAND      .  89 

VII.     AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION  IN  GERMANY     .  109 

VIII.     SCHOOLS  OF  COUNTRY  HOUSEKEEPING      .      .  129 

IX.    VOCATIONAL  GUIDANCE  IN  LONDON     .      .      .  143 

X.     WELFARE  OF  WORKING  YOUTH  IN  GERMANY  149 
XI.     RESUME    OF    REPORT    OF    SWEDISH    ROYAL 
COMMISSION   ON   ELEMENTARY   TECHNICAL 

INSTRUCTION  164 


[9] 


CHAPTER  I 

INTRODUCTION 

THE  superiority  of  the  civilization  of  today  to  that  of 
the  Middle  Ages  is  not  due  to  any  superiority  of 
modern  brains  to  medieval  brains.  There  is  no 
reason  to  think  that  there  has  been  the  slightest  increase 
in  brain  power. 

The  improvement  is  due  solely  to  improved  means  of 
transmitting  knowledge,  ideals,  and  methods  of  thinking 
and  working.  Recent  centuries  have  seen  a  tremendous 
increase  in  the  number  and  effectiveness  of  these  means. 

This  improvement  in  methods  accounts  both  for  the 
singular  achievements  of  individuals  in  particular  lines  of 
thought  and  work,  and  for  the  immensely  larger  proportion 
of  the  community  which  now  shares  in  the  best  thought  and 
the  most  effective  methods  of  our  time. 

But  these  advantages  are  or  should  be  the  inheritance 
of  the  whole  human  race.  In  point  of  fact  they  belong  at 
present  to  the  very  few  who  can  afford  to  take  all  the  edu- 
cation provided  by  our  public  school  system.  While  it  is 
impossible  for  all  the  members  of  any  society  to  utilize  to 
the  same  degree  this  common  fund  of  education,  on  the 
other  hand  no  society  can  be  sound  to  the  core  unless 
all  its  members  have  access  to  the  means  of  self-devel- 
opment long  enough  to  enable  them  to  take  what  they  need 
to  make  them  efficient  and  useful  citizens.  When  the  great 
majority  of  a  nation  consists  of  untrained,  inefficient,  dis- 
satisfied workmen,  it  is  time  for  that  nation  to  look  for  the 
remedy. 

This  fact  has  long  been  recognized  by  those  nations  that 
make  provision  for  the  compulsory  education  of  all  children 
up  to  the  age  of  fourteen.  Since  books  are  the  principal 
storehouses  of  the  accumulated  riches  of  thought  and  feel- 

1111 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


ing,  the  State  at  one  time  proceeded  on  the  assumption 
that  in  providing  for  all  its  children  the  opportunity  of 
learning  to  read,  it  had  done  its  part.  But  the  experience 
of  the  nineteenth  century  showed  that  only  individuals 
of  special  strength,  acuteness,  and  energy  are  able  to  make 
the  most  of  themselves  with  this  meager  equipment.  Con- 
sequently, we  have  now  eight  years  of  work  in  the  grammar 
schools  for  all  children  who  are  able  to  complete  it  by  the 
age  of  fourteen  and  such  others  as  have  the  means  and 
inclination  to  continue  beyond  that  age.  We  have  high 
schools,  technical  schools,  and  colleges  for  those  who  can 
prolong  the  period  of  education  to  the  age  of  eighteen  or  be- 
yond. These,  however,  are  considerably  less  than  one-tenth 
of  the  entire  school  attendance.  The  State,  then,  is  face  to 
face  with  the  question :  Has  all  been  done  that  can  be  done 
and  ought  to  be  done  to  help  more  than  nine-tenths  of  our 
young  people  to  realize  their  own  powers  as  individuals  and 
their  functions  as  members  of  society  and  the  nation? 

There  is  probably  no  educator  today  who  would  dare  to 
answer  that  question  otherwise  than  by  an  emphatic  No! 
The  injustice,  cruelty,  and  foolishness  of  educating  the 
great  majority  of  youth  up  to  fourteen  and  then  leaving  them 
entirely  to  shift  for  themselves,  at  the  very  moment  when 
they  most  especially  need  both  guidance  and  training,  is 
apparent  and  generally  admitted.  The  line  of  solution  is 
clearly  seen  to  be  vocational  education. 

But  what  is  vocational  education?  Probably  all  who 
have  considered  the  problem  would  agree  that  it  is  such 
training  as  will  enable  a  man  to  make  the  most  of  himself 
as  a  worker,  a  citizen,  and  a  human  being.  In  that  sense, 
all  education  is  on  a  vocational  basis.  As  our  school  system 
is  organized,  however,  until  recent  years  it  was  only  the 
young  people  who  had  the  opportunity  to  go  on  to  college 
and  the  professional  schools,  who  had  any  real  preparation 
for  their  life-work.  The  addition  of  technical  high  schools 
and  of  other  industrial  and  commercial  secondary  schools, 
.  and  of  vocational  departments  in  general  secondary  schools, 
has  made  it  possible  for  many  more  to  get  some  degree  of 

[12] 


INTRODUCTION 


practical  training  related  to  the  problems  of  work  and  of 
conduct.  But  for  the  overwhelming  majority  of  children 
who  go  to  work  at  fourteen  without  ever  reaching  the  high 
school  at  all,  or  who  through  lack  of  interest  in  the  sub- 
jects studied  drop  out  at  the  earliest  possible  moment,  even 
before  they  have  finished  the  grammar  school,  no  adequate 
provision  has  as  yet  been  made. 

Here  at  once  arises  a  difficulty.  While  it  is  generally 
agreed  that  the  great  majority  of  young  people  must  go  to 
work  at  as  early  an  age  as  the  law  will  permit,  and  also  that 
all  of  them  should  have  as  much  education  as  they  can 
assimilate,  and  that  the  few  of  exceptional  ability  should 
have  the  opportunity  to  rise,  the  question  which  does  not 
so  easily  settle  itself  is  whether  this  additional  training, 
which  is  admitted  to  be  their  due,  shall  be  introduced  into 
the  grammar  school  or  added  as  supplementary  after  they 
have  begun  to  work. 

There  has  been  much  argument  in  favor  of  the  former 
plan.  Why  should  we  not  use  our  present  system,  our 
present  equipment,  our  present  corps  of  teachers?  The 
answer  is,  that  to  do  so  would  be  to  frustrate  the  whole 
aim  of  vocational  education. 

The  aim  of  our  elementary  schools  is  rightly  to  give, 
during  the  period  of  childhood,  the  all-round  training  and 
general  information  that  everybody  needs  and  that  is  the 
basis  of  specialized  training  later.  To  shorten  this  period 
of  general  culture  by  putting  into  it  vocational  training  is, 
on  the  one  hand,  to  curtail  the  rights  of  childhood  and, 
on  the  other,  to  force  upon  children  a  kind  of  work  for 
which  they  are  not  fitted  until  they  reach  the  period  of 
adolescence. 

At  present,  the  great  majority  of  children  leave  school 
at  fourteen.  The  advocates  of  vocational  training  in  the 
present  school  system  must  either  put  it  into  the  higher 
grades  of  grammar  school  or  raise  the  minimum  age  for 
labor,  or  both.  They  propose,  in  fact,  to  do  both :  to  give 
two  years  of  such  training  in  the  grammar  school,  and  to 
get  legislation  raising  the  age  limit  for  work  to  sixteen. 

[13] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


But  the  law  is  not  yet  passed,  and  even  if  it  does  pass,  there 
remain  four  serious  objections  to  this  plan : 

1.  It  would  still  leave  two  years  of  the  dangerous, 
criminal-making  adolescent  period — sixteen  to  eighteen — 
outside  the  protection  and  guidance  of  the  schools. 

2.  It  would  give  the  boy  training  along  lines  of  work  in 
which  he  had  had  no  real  experience,  and  in  which  his 
interest  for  that  reason,  in  many  cases,  would  be  without 
root  and  easily  subject  to  change. 

3.  It  would  try  to  fit  him  for  a  special  line  of  work  with- 
out any  guaranty  that  changing  conditions  of  labor  might 
not  make  it  quite  impossible  for  him  to  find  that  kind  of 
work. 

4.  It  would  put  the  training  largely  into  the  hands  of 
teachers  who  at  best  could  be  but  amateur  workmen. 

Each  of  these  points  calls  for  some  elaboration : 

1.  During  the  period  of  adolescence,  aside  from  the 
problems  of  a  vocation,  the  youth  is  face  to  face  with  all  the 
new  aspects  of  life  involved  in  manhood  and  citizenship. 
With    his  imperfect   knowledge,   his    partially  established 
habits,  his  general  inclination  to  break  away  from  the  old 
restraints  and  to  form  new  connections,  with  the  awakening 
of  his  whole  nature  to  the  possibilities  of  life  and  his  con- 
sequent susceptibility  to  all  sorts  of  influences,  the  boy  be- 
tween fourteen  and  eighteen  is  in  constant  danger  from  all 
sides — a  danger  enormously  increased  if  he  does  not  at  once 
find  work  in  which  he  is  interested.     It  is  out  of  exactly 
this  situation  that  the  army  of  loafers,  vagabonds,  and  crim- 
inals is,  year  after  year,  most  largely  recruited.    A  system 
of  vocational  training  which  stops  at  fourteen  or  sixteen, 
cannot,  even  with  the  aid  of  vocational  bureaus,  handle  this 
situation  for  two  of  the  four  dangerous  years. 

2.  Further,  it  is  not  until  the  boy  has  actually  taken 
his  place  in  the  working  world,  and  is  gathering  the  expe- 
rience of  competition  and  earning  and  contact  in  innumer- 
able ways  with  life  outside  the  schoolroom — an  experience 
that  no  school  can  ever  give — that  he  is  ripe  for  the  special 
kind  of  training  which  I  describe  by  the  word  vocational. 

[14] 


INTRODUCTION 


This  process  of  training  is  fourfold.  It  begins  with  the 
analysis  of  his  experience  in  actual  work  which  is  the  foun- 
dation of  this  training,  and  shows  the  relation  of  the  technical 
and  cultural  elements  in  it  to  one  another.  It  then  shows 
how  these  elements  should  be  organized  and  made  to  reen- 
force  one  another  for  the  successful  progress  of  the  work 
and  the  development  of  the  worker.  Then  this  organized 
knowledge  must  be  supplemented  from  the  wider  experience 
and  knowledge  of  the  teacher  and  of  other  workers.  Finally, 
the  whole  process  must  be  so  interpreted  to  the  young  worker 
that  he  will  understand  his  work  and  come  into  a  vital  con- 
nection with  it.  Through  this  fourfold  process  he  will  real- 
ize that  the  work  in  itself  is  worth  doing  well,  and  that  the 
better  it  is  done,  the  more  doors  it  will  open  to  work  that 
is  still  more  worth  doing.  He  will  do  his  best,  secure  in  the 
feeling  that  this  best  will  lead  constantly  on  to  better.  As 
a  result  of  this  state  of  mind,  he  will  have  a  vital  interest  in 
his  work,  realizing  that  he  is  not  fixed  to  his  job  for  life,  but 
can  push  on  to  one  that  is  still  more  fruitful,  as  fast  and  as 
far  as  his  ability  and  energy  will  let  him.  Efficiency  in 
work  will  develop  social  and  civic  efficiency;  and  the 
salvation  of  thousands  whose  lives  are  now  stunted  or 
wasted  for  lack  of  this  special  form  of  care  will  inevitably 
follow. 

3.  Any  good  system  of  elementary  education  should 
provide  enough  practical  training  of  the  eye  and  hand,  and 
should  make  enough  study  of  its  pupils  to  be  able  to  give 
them  advice  as  to  the  kind  of  work  they  should  try  to  do. 
But  to  suppose  that  any  school  system  can  keep  in  close 
enough  touch  with  the  varying  labor  markets  to  provide 
just  enough  workmen  of  each  sort  is  absurd.  If  the  training 
is  so  general  that  a  boy  may  turn  from  printing  to  carpen- 
try, plastering,  or  plumbing,  according  to  the  demand,  then 
it  is  not  enough  to  give  him  any  special  efficiency.  Real 
vocational  education  begins  at  the  other  end — the  end  of  the 
world,  the  job  itself.  Assuming  that  the  boy  has  the  best 
job  that  for  the  time  he  can  get,  it  shows  him  how  to  make 
the  most  of  it,  how  to  develop  and  apply  his  own  tastes 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


and  abilities  so  that  he  is  constantly  preparing  himself  for 
one  that  is  better  in  itself  and  better  suited  to  him. 

4.  The  teacher  of  a  vocational  subject  in  an  academic 
system  might,  we  will  assume,  get  sufficient  training  in  the 
details  of  his  subject.  But  in  so  far  as  he  is  bound  to  give 
all  his  time  to  teaching,  he  could  never,  by  any  system  of 
shifting  about,  have  the  up-to-date  knowledge,  the  back- 
ground of  one  who  was  actually  in  the  thick  of  affairs,  or 
impress  his  pupils  as  one  who  was  a  master  of  his  craft,  one 
who  had  attained  the  goal  toward  which  they  were  striving. 
Moreover,  his  business  would  be  to  fit  the  vocational  work 
in  with  the  cultural  studies  which  must  continue  to  be  the 
chief  work  of  the  school,  not  to  use  the  cultural  subjects  to 
reenforce  the  vocational. 

For  these  reasons  among  others,  I  hold  that  serious 
vocational  work  should  not  be  undertaken  until  the  boy 
has  left  the  grammar  school.  To  say  that  the  work  done  in 
the  grammar  school  could  be  made  of  a  more  practical 
vocational  character,  without  losing  any  cultural  value,  is 
not  to  touch  the  argument  at  all. 

Since  experience  is  the  necessary  basis  for  all  fruitful 
work  of  this  sort,  the  best  type  of  supplementary  school 
would  be  on  a  part-time  basis;  that  is,  the  pupils  would  work 
most  of  the  time,  and  their  experience  at  work  would  form 
the  center  of  their  supplementary  training.  This  training 
would  aim  (1)  to  increase  their  skill  in  the  line  of  work 
they  are  following,  and  (2)  to  give  them  further  training 
in  such  academic  subjects  as  bear  upon  their  work;  (3)  to 
develop  the  qualities  of  mind  and  heart  that  make  good 
men  and  good  citizens. 

These  part-time  schools  should  be  day  schools  and  of 
three  different  sorts: 

1.  Schools  in  which  the  pupils  give  only  from  six  to 
eight  hours  a  week. 

2.  Schools  which,  by  special    arrangement  with    em- 
ployers, teach  for  half  time,  usually  alternate  weeks,  pupils 
who  are  at  work  the  rest  of  the  time. 

3.  Winter  agricultural  schools,  in  which  the  teaching  is 

[16] 


INTRODUCTION 


full  time  for  five  months  (November  to  April),  and  the 
pupils  work  on  the  farm  during  the  remaining  seven  months. 

All  these  schools  should  be  open  to  pupils  between  four- 
teen and  eighteen,  in  order  to  give  every  chance  to  earnest, 
ambitious  workers. 

There  should  be  industrial  schools  for  all  trades  and 
occupations,  each  adapting  itself  to  the  conditions  of  the 
locality  in  which  it  is  placed.  There  should  be  commercial 
schools  for  city  boys,  agricultural  schools  for  country  boys; 
and  in  addition  to  industrial  and  commercial  training  for 
girls,  there  should  be  schools  for  domestic  science  and 
arts — home-making  in  the  broadest  sense  of  the  word. 

Undoubtedly  there  should  be  more  full-time  vocational 
schools  for  young  people  who  can  afford  two  years  of  un- 
broken training.  These  should  be  commercial  as  well  as 
industrial,  for  both  boys  and  girls,  and  should  in  some  cases 
take  the  place  of  apprenticeship,  while  in  others  they 
merely  prepare  the  way  for  an  apprentice  training.  There 
should  also  be  full-time  two-year  courses  in  home-making 
for  girls.  But  all  these  schools  are  less  important  than  the 
part-time  schools,  because  they  would  reach  only  a  small 
minority  of  the  children. 

The  main  stress  must  be  thrown  upon  the  part-time 
system  as  the  only  "people's  college"  that  we  are  likely  to 
have  in  the  near  future. 

To  perfect  this  system,  mere  teaching  is  not  enough.  The 
school  must  get  a  real  grip  on  the  community.  This  can 
be  done  in  several  ways: 

1.  In  the  country,  by  combining  with  the  office  of 
director  of  a  winter  school  that  of  itinerant  teacher,  or,  as 
it  is  called  in  this  country,  county  expert,  whose  business 
it  shall  be  during  the  summer  to  reenforce  his  winter's  work 
among  his  pupils,  as  well  as  to  act,  as  he  now  does,  as  general 
guide  and  adviser  in  agricultural  matters  for  the  community. 

There  should  be  also  a  staff  of  itinerant  teachers  for  the 
State,  each  a  specialist  in  some  branch  of  agriculture,  who 
would  make  experiments  and  give  lectures  and  demonstra- 
tions according  to  the  demand. 

[171 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


2.  In  the  city  there  should  be  a  bureau  for  the  express 
purpose  of  studying  all  the  vocations  of  the  community  now 
open  to  the  youth,  and  of  giving  advice  based  upon  a  careful 
study  of  the  young  people  themselves  and  knowledge  of  the 
preparation   required,   the  risks  entailed,   and  the  oppor- 
tunities for  advancement. 

This  information  should  be  accessible  to  parents,  as  well 
as  teachers  and  other  school  officials,  to  assist  the  youth 
in  finding  the  occupation  for  which  he  is  best  suited.  Be- 
sides all  possible  information  about  different  lines  of  work, 
the  bureau  should  have  thorough  knowledge  of  the  boys 
and  girls  themselves,  based  upon  physical  examination  as 
well  as  upon  the  school  records.  The  work  already  begun 
in  this  direction  should  be  extended  and  developed  until 
we  have  vocational  bureaus  comparable  with  those  at  Edin- 
burgh and  in  many  cities  of  Germany. 

3.  The  vocational  school,  even  more  than  the  elemen- 
tary school,  must  care  for  the  whole  boy.    There  should,  of 
course,  be  playgrounds  and  gymnasiums,  libraries  and  read- 
ing rooms;  and  the  social  side  of  school  life,  as  it  finds  expres- 
sion in  excursions,  club  meetings,  and  entertainments,  should 
be  emphasized. 

Adolescence  is  the  period  when  the  mind  first  becomes 
fully  awake  to  the  possibilities  of  social  pleasure,  and  when, 
accordingly,  the  right  sort  of  guidance  is  peculiarly  im- 
portant. The  vocational  school  is  the  place  where  this 
sort  of  help  can  be  most  effectively  and  abundantly 
given. 

4.  The  vocational  school,  rather  than  any  other,  should 
be  the  true  social  center  for  the  entire  community,  whether 
in  the  city  or  country.    The  atmosphere  of  the  high  school 
is  alarming  to  the  plain  people.     They  feel  that  they  have 
outgrown    the   grammar   school.      The    vocational    school 
touches  them  on  the  side  of  their  chief  interest — earning  a 
living;    and  from  that  starting  point,  they  can  easily  be 
brought  to  enter  evening  classes  both  along  the  lines  of  their 
work  and  in  subjects  of  more  general  culture.     Thus  the 
vocational  school  has  a  better  opportunity  than  any  other 

[18] 


INTRODUCTION 


school  of  reaching  the  father  through  the  son,  and  the 
mother  through  the  daughter. 

"But,"  the  question  is  asked,  "granted  that  such 
schools  are  most  successful  in  separate  buildings,  with 
special  equipment  and  with  a  special  staff  of  teachers  hav- 
ing a  wide  and  up-to-date  practical  experience  in  special 
lines  of  work  as  well  as  teaching  ability,  why  can  they  not 
be  managed  by  the  academic  boards?" 

The  answer  to  these  questions  is,  in  one  word,  specializa- 
tion. If  we  find  it  necessary  to  have  separate  management, 
even  in  the  academic  system,  for  the  university,  normal, 
high  schools,  and  the  elementary  schools,  how  much  more 
necessary  is  it  that  schools  with  the  peculiar  problems  of 
vocational  training  to  deal  with,  in  adapting  themselves  to 
special  needs  and  special  local  conditions  should  have  a  free 
hand.  If  city  schools  and  country  schools  are  under  sepa- 
rate boards  and  are  adapted  to  special  ends  without  friction, 
why  should  not  these  "schools  in  life"  have  their  own 
boards  in  which  all  interests  are  represented?  It  is  no  more 
fair  to  speak  of  "dualism"  in  this  connection  than  to  speak 
of  dualism  in  the  city  and  county  systems. 

It  is  simply  a  case  for  specializing  so  that  the  weight  of 
responsibility  falls  upon  the  people  whose  experience  enables 
them  to  judge  best  of  the  community  needs. 

But,  in  any  case,  the  system  of  separate  vocational 
schools  which  I  am  urging  for  the  State  of  Illinois  does  not 
propose  to  interfere  in  any  way  with  the  present  school 
system.  That  may  or  may  not  need  reform  from  within. 
All  the  present  plan  aims  to  do  is  to  take  the  thousands  of 
young  people  whose  lives  are  hampered  or  altogether 
wasted  through  lack  of  proper  training,  and  give  them  a 
chance  to  develop  such  powers  as  lie  within  them,  and  so 
convert  them  into  useful  and  contented  citizens. 

The  opponents  of  a  special  system  of  schools  to  do  this 
special  work  seem  to  forget  that  various  countries  in  Europe 
long  ago  tried  to  solve  this  educational  problem  by  means 
of  the  school  system  then  in  existence,  and  in  not  a  single 
instance  with  entire  success.  At  the  present  moment  all 

[19] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


the  countries  that  are  attempting  to  deal  with  agricultural 
and  technical  education  have  either  reached  the  conclusion 
that  the  academic  system  cannot  do  the  work  successfully, 
or  are  in  the  process  of  changing  their  views  in  that  direction. 
In  not  a  single  case  is  the  pendulum  swinging  the  other  way. 

About  forty  years  ago,  Sweden,  for  instance,  reformed 
its  system  of  vocational  schools,  but  left  them  under  the 
general  management  of  the  academic  board.  What  was  the 
result?  The  Royal  Commission,  appointed  in  1907  to 
investigate  conditions  and  to  draw  up  a  new  plan  for  reform, 
found  that  little  progress  had  been  made  during  the  forty 
years,  that  the  teaching  prepared  for  all  vocations  in  general 
and  for  none  in  particular,  and  roused  but  little  interest  in 
young  workmen;  and  they  attributed  the  failure  of  these 
schools  directly  to  the  fact  that  they  were  not  under  the 
control  of  a  separate  board  in  which  men  in  the  industries 
and  in  business  had  the  controlling  voice. 

In  Ireland,  also  about  forty  years  ago,  the  study  of 
agriculture  was  introduced  into  thirty-eight  national  schools, 
and  other  agricultural  schools  were  established  under  the 
existing  school  management.  By  1899  the  teaching  of 
agriculture  had  been  altogether  dropped  from  the  national 
schools,  and  all  but  two  of  the  agricultural  schools  had 
gone  out  of  existence.  The  plan  had  failed.  By  a  new  Act 
of  Parliament  in  1899,  a  separate  Department  of  Agricul- 
ture and  Technical  Instruction  in  Ireland  was  established, 
and  the  two  separate  school  systems  have  worked  from  the 
beginning  without  a  jar.  The  results  already  obtained 
by  the  vocational  schools  all  point  to  steady  and  enduring 
progress. 

In  Holland,  the  system  of  agricultural  training  that  has 
grown  up  within  the  last  twenty  years,  and  is  now  under  the 
management  of  a  man  who  was  once  an  elementary  school 
teacher,  is  entirely  distinct  from  the  academic  school  system. 
And  the  development  of  Dutch  agriculture  under  this  system 
has  been  so  marked  that  Germany  looks  upon  her  little 
neighbor  as  a  serious  rival. 

In  Germany,  one  state  after  another  has  reached  the 

[20] 


INTRODUCTION 


conclusion  that  the  two  systems  of  education  must  work 
independently  of  each  other.  Now,  not  merely  Prussia, 
but  Baden,  Bavaria,  Wiirttemberg,  and  all  the  other  greater 
divisions  of  Germany,  have  worked  out  in  different  ways 
plans  by  which  vocational  training  shall  be  free  of  academic 
control. 

In  the  canton  Zurich,  Switzerland,  the  agricultural  and 
commercial  schools  are  not  even  under  the  educational  min- 
istry, and  all  the  vocational  schools  have  separate  local 
boards.  This  separation  between  academic  and  vocational 
school  control  the  Swiss  educational  expert,  Herr  Biefer,  re- 
gards as  fundamental. 

England  and  Scotland  were,  just  before  the  outbreak  of 
the  War,  in  process  of  changing.  The  agricultural  schools  of 
both  countries  were  in  1912  taken  from  the  control  of  the 
boards  of  education,  and  put  under  the  Ministry  of  Agri- 
culture. Last  spring  a  movement  was  on  foot  in  England 
to  organize  a  system  of  vocational  continuation  schools  on 
the  German  model  and  to  place  it  under  the  management  of 
the  Board  of  Trade  and  similar  bodies.  In  a  pamphlet 
written  by  Professor  Ogden  of  Cambridge  University  and 
Mr.  R.  H.  Best,  a  prominent  business  man  of  Birmingham, 
to  further  this  movement  we  read:  "The  reforms  which  we 
have  been  advocating  do  imply  a  new  and  independent  class 
of  school  with  its  own  problems  and  its  own  aims  —  and  con- 
sequently the  need  of  a  special  controlling  authority." 

Mr.  Best  wrote  me  that  a  bill  embodying  the  ideas 
expressed  in  this  pamphlet  would  be  presented  to  the 
English  Parliament  during  the  summer. 

What  is  the  conclusion?  Europe  has  no  doubt.  Why 
should  we  try  to  make  a  piece  of  public  machinery  do  work 
for  which  it  is  not  fitted,  when  it  is  perfectly  easy  to  add  a 
piece  of  supplementary  machinery  which  will  work  in  perfect 
harmony  with  it,  and  which  can  be  perfectly  adapted  to  the 
purpose  in  view.  To  do  this  is,  as  the  experience  of  Europe 
shows,  merely  common  sense.  The  plan  does  not  introduce 
an  imaginary  dualism  into  a  system  wrongly  supposed  to 
be  now  a  unit;  it  merely  pushes  specialization  a  step  farther. 

[21] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION        * 


It  is  not  undemocratic:  it  merely  provides  for  the  great 
majority  who  are  turned  out  by  the  present  system,  un- 
prepared for  life.  And  these  cannot,  by  any  modification 
of  the  present  system,  be  prepared  for  life  through  the 
analysis,  organization,  supplementation,  and  interpreta- 
tion of  their  experience,  when  as  adolescents  they  face  the 
real  conditions  of  working  for  a  living,  until  they  have  left 
the  atmosphere  of  the  academic  school  and  are  breathing 
that  of  the  outer  world.  At  just  this  point,  not  sooner 
and  not  later,  we  need  this  special  kind  of  school  which 
Europe  evolved  half  a  century  ago — this  people's  college 
that  is,  perhaps,  the  most  potent  factor  today  in  the  saving 
of  a  state. 


1221 


1.  RECREATION  ROOM  IN  PEOPLE'S  HIGH  SCHOOL,  ROSKILDE,  DENMARK 

2.  PEOPLE'S  HIGH  SCHOOL,  ROSKILDE,  DENMARK 

3.  GYMNASIUM  IN  PEOPLE'S  HIGH  SCHOOL,  ROSKILDE,  DENMARK 

4.  LECTURE  ROOM  IN  PEOPLE'S  HIGH  SCHOOL,  ASKOV,  DENMARK 


CHAPTER  II 

BISHOP   GRUNDTVIG  AND   THE   PEOPLE'S 
HIGH  SCHOOLS 

AT  the  middle  of  the  last  century,  Denmark  had  reached 
perhaps  the  low-water  mark  of  her  history.  Polit- 
ically, she  had  been  defeated  by  England  and  Ger- 
many; economically,  she  was  near  bankruptcy.  Her  com- 
merce had  declined;  the  old  Viking  culture  seemed  to  have 
disappeared  and  been  forgotten  by  the  people  themselves; 
the  national  language  had  been  displaced  by  bad  German 
among  the  educated  classes;  while  the  speech  of  the  country 
folk  was  dissolving  into  a  group  of  dialects  without  standard 
or  stability.  A  Danish  prime  minister  even  proposed  to 
substitute  German  as  the  written  language  of  the  country. 

At  this  critical  hour  of  need  arose  a  great  man  to  meet 
that  need,  Bishop  Grundtvig.  A  clergyman  and  a  scholar, 
the  representative  of  the  aristocracy  of  the  intellectual  and 
spiritual  life,  he  saw  clearly  that  a  great  awakening  was 
necessary  to  save  the  country  and  its  people  from  stagnation 
and  decay.  He  realized  that  the  only  way  to  bring  about 
this  change  was  to  replace  the  humanistic  education  of  his 
time,  which  was  utterly  foreign  to  the  lives  of  the  people, 
by  a  revival  of  the  old  Northern  culture  as  it  flourished 
after  the  exploits  of  Viking  days,  and  to  build  upon  this  as 
a  basis  an  active  and  creative  national  life. 

As  early  as  1832,  he  raised  the  question  of  the  need  of  a 
liberal  education  for  the  great  mass  of  the  people,  as  a 
counterpoise  to  college  education  for  the  few.  As  a  scholar, 
he  believed  in  college  education;  but  he  felt  that  it  tended 
away  from  the  cultivation  of  the  life  of  the  spirit  into  mere 
book-learning.  He  realized  that  research  was  essential  to 
keep  any  education  from  becoming  mere  superficial  polish; 
but  the  education  that  he  wished  to  give  to  the  whole 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


people,  he  felt,  must  be  much  more  than  preparation  for 
college.  It  must  be  independent,  self-contained,  "a  real 
spiritual  power,"  he  says,  "through  which  the  life  of  the 
present  may  establish  its  absolutely  necessary  rights — 
rights  which  the  learned  so  often  misunderstand."  And 
the  center  from  which  the  school  work  should  branch  out 
in  all  directions,  which  should  assemble  and  organize  all 
educational  activities,  must  be  the  Fatherland  itself. 

It  is  interesting  to  see  how  Grundtvig's  threefold  expe- 
rience as  churchman,  scholar,  and  educator  appears  in  the 
theory  that  he  then  developed.  He  believed  that  the  first 
years  of  manhood  and  womanhood  are  the  formative 
period  of  the  spiritual  nature,  when  great  hopes  and  visions 
come  into  being  and  foreshadow  the  mature  life,  when 
"the  soul  reaches  out  for  the  cloak  that  fits  it."  With 
Rousseau  he  was  anxious  to  preserve  the  rights  of  child- 
hood from  the  demands  of  mature  life.  He  emphasized 
the  need  of  physical  development  during  the  years  between 
fourteen  and  eighteen,  the  hobbledehoy  period  (die  Flegel- 
jahre);  and  he  held  that  the  training  of  every  boy  and  girl 
during  those  years  should  be  largely  physical,  the  temper- 
ing of  the  body  and  the  sensual  nature  by  actual  work  and 
by  free  exercise  in  all  kinds  of  sport. 

He  set  the  eighteenth  year  as  the  time  when  ideals  can 
best  be  established,  when  the  steps  can  be  built,  up  which 
young  people  will  go  to  "the  work  of  life  as  if  going  to  a 
feast." 

For  this  stage  of  development,  then,  he  proposed  spe- 
cially organized  schools  which  should  put  inspiration  into 
the  lives  of  the  young  people,  should  keep  them  from  straying 
after  false  ideals,  should  control  the  desires  which  so  easily 
overflow  the  banks  of  reason  at  this  time,  and  give  them  a 
real  foundation  for  helping  themselves  and  others.  To 
this  end,  his  plan  was  to  take  them  out  of  the  industrial 
world  for  a  short  time,  to  keep  them  largely  away  from 
vocational  activity,  and  not  to  emphasize  book-learning 
and  lessons  by  rote,  but  to  awaken  their  power  of  ideal- 
ization and  to  broaden  their  mental  and  spiritual  outlook, 

[24] 


BISHOP  GRUNDTVIG  AND  PEOPLE'S  HIGH  SCHOOLS 

at  the  same  time  giving  them  the  groundwork  necessary  for 
success  in  all  vocations,  whether  the  work  should  be  done 
with  ink  and  paper,  with  plow,  needle,  or  hammer  and  anvil. 
The  bishop  sarcastically  deprecated  the  idea  of  "producing 
mere  professors,  public  officials,  or  candidates  for  the 
poorhouse."  In  other  words,  this  new  education  was  to 
be  at  once  general  and  practical.  He  says  further:  "The 
chief  aim  is  to  teach  young  people  to  understand  noble, 
active  human  life  with  its  wonderful  laws.  Our  national 
culture  must  rest  upon  the  enlightenment  of  all  classes 
and  if  education  is  organized  as  if  everyone  were  to  be  an 
official  or  a  gentleman  of  leisure,  the  entire  people  will  die 
of  hunger.  It  is  not  a  question  of  what  will  be  serviceable 
for  the  officials  or  the  leisure  class,  but  for  those  who  will  be 
neither  the  one  nor  the  other.  Our  aim  must  be  to  provide 
a  liberal  education  which  will  make  the  whole  people  fit 
for  their  work  and  happy  in  their  situation." 

The  high  schools  established  on  this  theory  admit  only 
pupils  who  are  eighteen  years  old  or  more,  and  who  have 
usually  chosen  a  vocation  and  know  something  of  it.  They 
aim  to  make  each  one  return  to  his  work  with  greater  interest 
in  it,  and  with  a  clearer  perception  of  the  social  and  economic 
conditions  surrounding  it,  with  a  thorough  knowledge  of 
what  has  been  accomplished  by  the  Danish  people  in  the 
past,  and  with  a  desire  to  take  part  in  their  future  achieve- 
ments. As  Mr.  Alfred  Povlsen,  director  of  one  of  the  largest 
of  these  schools,  says:  "This  education  should  never  lead 
to  discouragement  or  contempt  for  work,  but  should  dignify 
labor  and  increase  the  ability  to  do  it  well." 

Further,  these  schools  aim  "to  fill  up  the  gap  between  the 
educated  and  the  uneducated;  to  bridge  the  boundless  abyss 
which  the  hierarchy,  the  aristocracy,  and  the  Latin  schools 
have  built  between  almost  the  entire  people  upon  the  one 
side  and  a  handful  of  the  so-called  educated  and  enlightened 
upon  the  other." 

Grundtvig,  who  himself  had  written  more  than  30,000 
pages  of  printed  matter,  was  emphatic  against  mere  book- 
learning.  He  says:  "I  love  books,  for  they  form  a  bridge 

[25] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


that  connects  me  with  the  past;  I  hate  books,  for  they  set 
up  a  wall  between  me  and  the  present."  Therefore  he  wished 
these  schools  not  merely  to  give  needful  information,  but 
to  train  the  emotions  and  the  will,  not  by  means  of  books 
but  by  word  of  mouth — as  he  calls  it,  "the  living  word." 
He  says:  "First  and  last,  it  is  the  living  word  that  must  be 
used,  because  this  is  the  only  living  tool  that  the  spirit  has 
upon  earth.  We  can  never  get  into  touch  with  the  people 
except  by  what  passes  from  mouth  to  mouth."  He  knew 
that  the  common  people,  unused  to  the  printed  page,  learn 
what  they  learn  by  oral  transmission,  and  that  during  the  few 
months  they  are  in  attendance  at  these  high  schools,  the  only 
strong  appeal  that  can  be  made  to  them  is  through  this 
"living  word." 

As  this  idea  is  the  very  foundation  of  Grundtvig's 
pedagogy,  it  will  perhaps  bear  elaboration.  In  explaining  the 
effect  of  the  "living  word"  as  passed  on  from  master  to 
pupils,  he  says:  "I  am  convinced  that  it  not  only  expresses 
this  or  that  fact,  but  in  its  earnestness  gives  something  that 
may  be  called  inspiration;  that  in  the  breast  of  each  human 
being  there  slumbers  a  higher  life  power,  which,  unless  we 
stubbornly  close  our  ears  when  it  finds  adequate  expression 
in  words,  carries  us  along  with  it.  This  higher  kind  of 
speech,  these  winged  words,  I  have  learned  to  know  and 
admire  and  to  wish  for  myself,  and  through  this  I  was 
carried  back  to  faith  in  the  living  power  of  the  invisible, 
in  the  spirit  and  spiritual  world  as  something  that  is  real, 
indeed,  that  has  a  stronger  and  higher  reality  than  those 
things  that  we  see  with  our  eyes." 

The  first  condition  of  teaching,  then,  in  these  schools  is 
that  there  should  be  a  direct,  an  immediate,  appeal  from 
the  teacher  to  the  pupil;  that  the  teacher's  words  should 
be  neither  technical  nor  oratorical  but  should  have  in  them 
"a  deep  undercurrent  of  feeling  that  penetrates  the  heart 
and  rivets  the  attention." 

On  this  theory  examinations  are  unnecessary  and  have 
never  been  introduced.  Povlsen  says  of  the  schools :  "They 
are  not  established  to  lead  directly  to  better  pay,  more  profits, 

[261 


BISHOP  GRUNDTVIG  AND  PEOPLE'S  HIGH  SCHOOLS 

or  better  positions  as  such.  There  must  not  be  any  advan- 
tage gained  from  attending  such  a  school  but  what  can 
be  neither  weighed  nor  measured,  on  which  no  pecuniary 
estimate  can  be  placed.  No  other  profit  must  be  derived 
from  this  instruction  than  the  increase  in  inner  worth  which 
all  good  learning  gives." 

The  instruction  given  may  be  divided  into  (1)  Danish 
language,  literature,  and  history;  (2)  physical  culture  and 
singing;  (3)  science  and  a  few  other  subjects. 

Practical  work,  vocational  training  proper,  is  the  excep- 
tion, not  the  rule. 

Perhaps  sixty-five  per  cent  of  the  time  is  given  to  the 
Danish  language,  literature,  and  history,  with  all  the  em- 
phasis upon  the  method  of  teaching,  and  the  personality  of 
the  teacher,  rather  than  upon  the  subject  matter.  "The 
aim  is  not  to  learn  this  or  that,  much  or  little,  but  to  prepare 
for  the  teaching  of  life."  If  the  schools  of  any  country  can 
really  do  this,  the  problem  of  vocational  education  will  be 
greatly  simplified. 

In  the  study  of  the  mother  tongue,  the  aim  is  to  get 
free  and  natural  expression.  The  pupils  are  not  tormented 
with  formal  grammar  and  rhetoric,  but  the  masterpieces 
of  Danish  literature  are  used  to  awaken  the  spiritual  life 
and  to  create  ideals  in  a  race  that,  as  Grundtvig  said,  "had 
been  brooding  in  stupid  materialism." 

From  the  time  of  Grundtvig,  song  has  been  much  used 
in  teaching  the  mother  tongue.  The  old  bishop  said,  in 
a  letter  written  in  1841 :  "Among  the  teachers  of  a  high  school 
there  ought  to  be  at  least  one  who  is  master  of  the  mother 
tongue,  not  only  as  it  is  found  in  books,  but  as  it  lives  in 
the  nation;  at  least  one  who  knows  and  loves  the  history  of 
our  Fatherland  and  is  able  to  picture  it  vividly  in  words; 
at  least  one  who  knows  and  loves  our  national  songs  in  their 
old  form  as  well  as  in  the  new,  and  is  able  to  lead  the  choir 
himself;  at  least  one  who  has  seen  much  of  our  Fatherland 
and  knows  the  nation,  its  trades  and  resources;  and,  finally, 
one  learned  in  the  law  is  to  be  desired,  one  who  can  give  the 
youth  a  true  and  vivid  apprehension  of  our  Fatherland's 

[271 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


constitution  and  laws  as  they  were  formerly  and  as  they 
are  now." 

He  also  maintained:  "Denmark  would  be  ten  times  hap- 
pier if  the  beautiful  Danish  songs  which  were  then  only  on 
paper,  never  sung  except  on  state  occasions,  echoed  in  all  our 
school  halls  and  resounded  in  fields  and  forests.  These  songs 
constitute  a  connecting  link  between  the  youth  and  the  glori- 
fied spirit  of  the  people  as  expressed  in  their  literature.  It  is 
only  the  lack  of  this  necessary  link  which  causes  the  people 
to  become  more  lifeless,  dull,  surly  and  without  hope  while 
their  literature  overflows  with  life  and  the  fullness  of  glorious 
recollections  of  the  past  and  illuminating  anticipations  of 
the  future."  He  says  further  that  he  would  rather  have 
one  of  his  little  songs  wafted  to  the  ears  of  his  fellowmen 
than  that  the  hands  of  all  men  should  be  industriously 
thumbing  the  pages  of  his  thickest  books.  The  greatest 
joy  of  the  poet  is  when  naked  childish  feet  can  trip  about 
the  streets  to  the  melody  of  his  songs,  and  that  song  of  the 
poet  is  his  masterpiece  which  the  maiden  can  sing  while 
binding  the  sheaves  or  while  dancing  at  the  village  feast. 

In  these  schools,  singing  is  more  than  a  subject  or  an 
art;  it  has  become  an  atmosphere,  a  feeling,  an  interest 
that  embraces  everything  else  in  the  high  school  teaching 
and  is  inseparable  from  it.  The  pupils  sing  one  or  two  songs 
before  each  lecture  and  very  often  afterwards.  When  I 
expressed  surprise  at  the  large  amount  of  time  given  to 
singing  these  national  songs,  I  was  told  that  they  brought  a 
harmony  of  spirit  that  was  conducive  to  good  work. 

The  greatest  stress,  however,  is  laid  upon  history  as  a 
character-forming  study.  The  theory  is  that  the  race  re- 
veals itself  in  the  words  and  deeds  of  individuals;  that  all 
human  wisdom  is  fundamentally  historical,  and  that  knowl- 
edge of  the  past  is  the  only  way  of  understanding  the 
present,  and  of  making  judicious  plans  for  the  future.  As 
history  is  cumulative  experience — an  experience  of  which 
no  individual,  conditioned  as  he  is  by  time  and  place  and 
circumstance,  can  compass  more  than  a  minute  portion, 
even  in  the  longest  life,  and  as  the  young  people  themselves 

[28] 


BISHOP  GRUNDTVIG  AND  PEOPLE'S  HIGH  SCHOOLS 

are  totally  lacking  in  all  such  experience,  it  is  history  that 
can  best  supply  their  deficiency  in  this  respect. 

A  Danish  writer,  Thomas  Bredsdorff,  director  of  the 
People's  High  School  at  Roskilde,  says:  "Instruction  in 
history  is  vital  when  it  causes  life  to  be  felt,  consciously  or 
subconsciously,  as  a  stream  rising  in  the  remote  past  and 
rushing  to  the  sea  of  eternity.  We  are  in  this  stream; 
its  waters  are  all  about  us  so  that  we  feel  ourselves  a  part 
of  it  and  are  borne  up  by  it,  in  joy  and  sorrow,  even  to 
eternity." 

Another  writer,  Begtrup,  uses  a  similar  figure  to  express 
this  idea:  "History  does  not  mean  books  and  maps;  it  is 
not  to  be  divided  into  lessons  and  gone  through  with  a 
pointer  like  any  other  paltry  school  subject.  History  lies 
before  our  eyes  like  a  mighty  and  turbulent  ocean,  into 
which  the  ages  run  like  rivers.  Its  rushing  waves  bring  to 
our  listening  ears  the  sound  of  a  thousand  voices  from  the 
olden  time.  With  our  pupils  we  stand  on  the  edge  of  a  cliff 
and  gaze  over  this  great  sea;  we  strive  to  open  their  eyes  to 
its  power  and  beauty;  we  point  out  the  laws  of  the  rise  and 
fall  of  the  waves,  and  of  the  strong  undercurrents.  We 
strive  by  poetic  speech  to  open  their  ears  to  the  voices  of 
the  sea  which  in  our  very  blood  run  through  the  veins  from 
generation  to  generation,  and,  humming  and  singing,  echo 
in  our  innermost  being." 

In  this  instruction  are  included  the  old  legends  of  the 
people  which  relate  the  most  noteworthy  events  in  the 
history  of  the  Fatherland.  Grundtvig  says:  "The  depth 
of  the  love  of  a  people  for  the  Fatherland  can  be  measured 
by  the  living  stream  of  their  recollections  of  their  illustri- 
ous fathers.  It  would  be  foolish  and  a  betrayal  of  faith 
to  substitute  for  these  treasures  a  critical  investigation  of 
history  with  boys  who  do  not  know  what  an  investigation 
means." 

History,  then,  in  every  form,  the  history  of  the  world 
as  well  as  of  Denmark,  the  history  of  religion  and  of  civiliza- 
tion, is  the  controlling  study  in  these  high  schools,  and  when 
the  pupils  are  familiar  with  the  past,  the  teacher  discusses 

[29] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


in  a  popular  way  current  conditions  and  problems  in  society, 
the  state,  the  church,  or  the  school. 

Hollmann  sums  up  the  theory  as  follows:  (1)  History  is 
the  center  of  all  education;  and  (2)  in  teaching  history  it  is 
the  vivid  spoken  word  that  is  all-important. 

The  aim  is  not  a  bare  formal  exercise  of  the  memory  and 
understanding,  but  growth  in  spiritual  power,  for  which  is 
needed,  on  the  one  hand,  pupils  who  have  reached  the  age 
when  they  are  most  susceptible  to  intellectual  and  spiritual 
influences,  on  the  other,  a  sympathetic  personality  in  the 
teacher. 

Grundtvig  speaks  of  "the  spirit  of  the  race  that  unites 
all  generations  into  a  living  whole."  He  urges:  "We 
ought  to  and  can  fight  in  the  company  of  the  best";  that  is, 
"Not  only  should  we  follow  the  example  of  our  forefathers, 
but  we  should  really  feel  that  we  are  fighting  in  the  same 
fight  with  those  who  have  gone  before  us 

"The  study  of  history  seems  almost  useless  if  it  cannot 
make  us  feel  the  connection  between  ourselves  and  the  lives 
of  the  earlier  members  of  the  race 

"If  our  history  cannot  mean  to  us  the  sum  of  what  our 
fathers  fought  for  and  our  mothers  wept  for,  as  true  an 
inheritance  from  them  as  our  natural  inheritance,  then  it 
is  a  mere  amusement  for  leisure  time,  but  can  never  be  alive. 
Popular  education  means  an  education  that  has  grown  out 
of  a  heartfelt  living  together  with  the  history  of  the 
people,  and  from  a  belief  that  this  history,  as  belonging  to 
all  members  of  the  race,  will  be  able  to  unite  them  into  one 
living  organism." 

Such  instruction  must  necessarily  be  given  through 
lectures,  not  textbooks.  Mr.  Bredzdorff  of  the  Roskilde 
People's  High  School  says:  "The  historical  lecture  has 
become  the  very  pulse  of  the  high  schools.  Here  past, 
present,  and  future  make  one  living  whole.  The  countless 
generations  are  not  disconnected  fragments  drifting  and 
vanishing  in  the  stream  of  time.  No,  generations  follow 
the  course  of  generations,  and  unite  us  in  one  great  com- 
munion of  the  people,  those  in  their  graves  living  still  in  that 

[30] 


BISHOP  GRUNDTVIG  AND  PEOPLE'S  HIGH  SCHOOLS 

spiritual  beat  of  the  waves  as  they  move  forward  through 
the  ages." 

Grundtvig  held  also  that  the  high  schools  should  give 
some  attention  to  the  statistics  of  the  country,  its  con- 
stitution and  its  legislative  and  administrative,  national, 
and  communal  organizations.  He  wished  the  organization 
of  the  state  to  be  clearly  presented  but  without  involving 
political  issues.  He  did  not  wish  the  school  to  become  a 
battleground  of  political  opinions,  but  he  hoped  the  youth 
would  receive  there  enough  understanding  of  political 
affairs  to  be  able  to  form  opinions  for  themselves  so  they 
they  would  not  fall  helplessly  into  the  hands  of  the  political 
agitator.  They  should  be  instructed  as  to  the  meaning  of 
legislation  so  that  they  would  understand  that  it  is  not  an 
arbitrary  matter  but  an  emanation  of  the  people's  will.  The 
schools  must  be  in  tensely  Danish.  He  did  not  believe  in 
the  cosmopolitan:  he  might  walk  erect  upon  two  legs  and 
have  a  nose  in  the  middle  of  his  face,  but  he  could  have  no 
soul.  Each  nationality,  he  said,  like  kinds  of  wood,  had  its 
own  grain;  and  the  cosmopolitan  was  mere  sawdust.  Hence, 
an  understanding  and  love  of  the  Fatherland  must  be  the 
very  core  of  the  work  in  history. 

The  idea  of  combining  technical,  agricultural,  and 
industrial  training  with  the  work  of  these  schools  has  often 
been  suggested.  About  thirty -five  (out  of  eighty)  have  some 
agricultural  instruction,  but  most  of  them  have  kept  to 
their  original  basis  of  a  liberal  education.  Pupils  are  urged 
to  put  in  a  winter  at  a  people's  high  school  before  entering 
a  winter  agricultural  school.  On  the  monument  to  J.  C. 
LaCour,  who  founded  the  agricultural  winter  school  at 
Lyngby,  is  found  the  following  inscription:  "The  Danish 
agricultural  school  is  the  daughter  of  the  Danish  people's 
high  schools  and  must,  like  these,  be  built  upon  the  founda- 
tion of  the  faith  and  life  of  the  people." 

Grundtvig's  idea  was  to  have  near  each  high  school  a 
well-conducted  agricultural  plant,  and  shops  in  which  the 
pupils  might  see  practical  work;  but  he  did  not  believe  in 
introducing  technical  instruction  into  the  schools  themselves. 

[31] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


His  purpose  was,  in  connection  with  the  lecture  work, 
merely  to  provide  opportunities  for  direct  acquaintance 
with  many  features  of  economic  life. 

So  thoroughly  does  the  historical  method  dominate  all 
teaching  that  even  science  is  presented  largely  as  connected 
with  the  investigations  of  great  men.  For  instance,  a  lesson 
in  electricity  might  turn  on  the  work  of  Franklin;  in  botany, 
on  that  of  Linnaeus.  Naturally,  this  lends  an  immediate 
human  interest  to  the  subject.  It  may  be  noted  that  this 
movement  towards  connecting  science  with  history  has 
begun  in  other  lands,  and  that  several  books  have  been 
written  to  encourage  this  type  of  instruction  in  American 
schools. 

In  my  own  observation,  I  was  impressed  with  the  free- 
dom and  naturalness  of  the  relations  between  teachers  and 
pupils.  I  saw  no  machinery  for  discipline.  The  students 
seemed  happy  and  at  the  same  time  intensely  interested. 
I  was  impressed  by  the  tone  of  earnestness  of  the  teacher's 
lecture  and  by  the  attention  given  by  the  students.  In  one 
case,  in  Roskilde,  I  almost  sprang  from  my  seat  at  the  open- 
ing sentences  of  the  teacher's  address.  His  call  was  like  the 
sound  of  a  trumpet,  or  like  the  Marseillaise,  which  is  not 
music  but  a  battle  cry. 

In  the  gymnasium  at  Askov,  the  students  preceded  their 
hour  of  exercise  by  marching  about  the  hall  and  singing  a 
hymn  to  the  Danish  flag;  after  the  exercise  followed  another 
march  and  another  song.  I  have  never  seen  anything  of  the 
kind  outside  Denmark;  I  found  my  hands  clenched  and  my 
heart  in  my  throat.  I  felt  that  I  understood  a  little  of  the 
Viking  spirit. 

The  teacher  asked  me  whether  I  had  seen  the  monu- 
ments at  Skibelund,  and  added  that  they  were  a  part  of  the 
patriotic  education  of  the  students  of  Askov. 

At  this  same  school  the  principal  told  me  of  a  conference 
of  representatives  of  the  churches  of  Denmark  to  be  held 
at  Askov  that  very  day,  to  discuss  the  question  of  the  sep- 
aration of  Church  and  State.  I  saw  them  drive  in,  about 
seventy  or  eighty  men,  from  the  little  railway  station  two 

[32] 


BISHOP  GRUNDTVIG  AND  PEOPLE'S  HIGH  SCHOOLS 

miles  away.  What  impressed  me  most  was  the  fact  that 
this  important  conference  was  held,  not  in  Copenhagen, 
but  in  a  little  country  high  school,  two  miles  from  nowhere. 
It  showed  that  the  schools  are  an  integral  part  of  the  social 
life  of  Denmark,  when  they  are  considered  to  furnish  the 
proper  atmosphere  for  settling  so  momentous  a  question. 

The  next  morning  I  set  out  in  the  rain  for  the  monu- 
ments at  Skibelund.  They  were  on  the  edge  of  a  little  bluff 
looking  down  over  the  German  frontier.  On  the  west  end 
was  a  national  amphitheater,  with  raised  banks  of  turf,  and 
a  pulpit  in  the  center,  near  one  end.  This  amphitheater 
would  seat  perhaps  three  thousand  people.  Around  the 
amphitheater  were  a  series  of  monuments  of  prominent 
Danes — no  soldiers,  but  teachers  of  the  people's  high  schools, 
prominent  men  in  the  cooperative  movement,  writers,  and 
organizers.  Over  the  edge  of  the  bluff,  near  the  frontier, 
was  a  little  schoolhouse,  where  the  children  of  Danish  pa- 
rentage in  Schleswig  come  in  winter  to  study  the  Danish 
language  and  sing  the  Danish  songs. 

A  little  farther  along  the  bluff  was  a  granite  monument 
of  a  female  figure  personifying  the  Danish  language  and 
literature,  with  busts  of  two  famous  Danish  poets  by  her 
side.  Her  arms  were  stretched  out  to  her  brothers  in  Schles- 
wig. Still  farther  along  the  bluff  was  the  battle  monument. 
It  was  a  huge  granite  triangular  block,  representing  the 
old  Norse  battle  formation.  King  Magnus  was  at  the 
fighting  angle,  his  warriors  with  their  battle  axes  forming 
the  sides  of  the  triangle.  Above,  cut  in  the  granite,  were 
the  three  ravens  of  Odin,  and  three  bells,  the  bells  of  the  old 
cathedral  of  Trondhjem  in  Norway,  hundreds  of  miles  away, 
which  the  soldiers  heard  cheering  them  on  to  victory  over 
the  heathen  Wends.  On  the  back  of  the  monument  was  a 
spirited  inscription,  expressing  the  hope  that  Denmark 
would  again  come  to  her  own  as  against  the  Prussians  (the 
descendants  of  the  heathen  Wends). 

To  this  place  come  students  from  all  the  high  schools 
of  Scandinavia  to  hear  patriotic  speeches  and  sing  patriotic 
songs. 

[331 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


Altogether  there  are  about  eighty  of  these  high  schools 
with  about  10,000  students,  nearly  all  from  the  country. 
The  usual  time  of  attendance  is  one  whiter.  It  is  estimated 
that  more  than  thirty  per  cent  of  the  young  men  in  rural 
districts  have  been  pupils,  and  of  these  many  have  been 
encouraged  to  go  on  to  the  winter  agricultural  schools. 

The  schools  are  in  session  from  November  to  May  for 
boys,  and  during  the  summer  for  girls.  The  course  of  in- 
struction is  much  the  same  for  both,  and  many  of  the 
teachers  are  employed  for  both  terms. 

The  students  live  in  the  school,  but  the  charges  are  low : 
board  and  lodging  and  tuition  cost  about  $9.45  a  month 
in  winter  and  $8.64  in  summer.  Deserving  poor  students 
get  government  assistance;  and  each  school  itself  receives 
about  $810.00  a  year  from  the  government. 

Teachers  and  students  take  at  least  one  meal  a  day 
together.  This  living  in  common  is  held  to  be  one  of  the 
important  parts  of  the  school  program,  as  it  is  believed 
that  it  has  developed  the  capacity  shown  by  the  Danish 
people  in  later  life  for  working  together  in  business  affairs. 
And  it  certainly  is  true  that  the  Danes  lead  the  world  in 
cooperative  farming. 

The  teachers  are  not  required  to  pass  an  examination, 
but  are  appointed  by  the  director  of  the  school.  The  school 
itself  is  almost  always  his  private  property  or  belongs  to  a 
high  school  association;  and  the  State,  on  account  of  the 
smallness  of  its  contributions  to  support,  exercises  a  very 
limited  supervision.  Under  these  conditions  of  freedom, 
fully  half  of  the  schools  quickly  go  to  pieces;  but  those  that 
continue  are  very  much  alive.  Only  persons  with  a  special 
gift  for  the  peculiar  kind  of  teaching  required  and  good 
executive  ability  can  hope  to  succeed. 

What  have  these  schools  done  for  Denmark?  A  German 
writer,  Dr.  Madsen,  sums  up  their  work  as  follows:  The 
advantages  are  both  material  and  intellectual.  First,  the 
schools  have  been  an  exceedingly  important  factor  in  the 
economic  life  of  the  country.  Only  an  enlightened  and 
active  class  of  farmers  could  pass  so  quickly  and  so  com- 

[34] 


BISHOP  GRUNDTVIG  AND  PEOPLE'S  HIGH  SCHOOLS 

pletely  from  one  branch  of  production  to  another  as  the  farm- 
ers of  Denmark  did  in  the  eighties.  At  this  time,  in  order 
to  avoid  a  crisis,  at  one  stroke  they  turned  from  the  pro- 
duction of  wheat  to  the  production  of  butter  and  the  raising 
of  cattle,  and  introduced  organizations  of  cooperative 
creameries  and  slaughter  houses.  The  high  schools  have 
exercised  a  great  influence  in  making  this  possible,  and 
many  believe  that  without  their  instruction  it  could  not 
have  been  brought  about. 

The  people's  high  schools  have  always  striven  to  develop 
and  perfect  gardening  and  farming,  the  principal  industries 
of  Denmark.  They  encourage  and  assist  agricultural 
schools  which  are  often  grouped  with  them  as  at  Lyngby. 
These  agricultural  schools  give  instruction  on  every  phase 
of  agricultural  or  rural  life  that  will  be  of  benefit  to  the 
country  people,  including  country  mechanics.  Courses  of 
from  five  days  to  six  months  are  given  in  them  at  small 
expense.  In  all  these  movements  the  people's  high  schools 
contribute  a  stimulus  and  support.  If  you  ask  a  Dane  which 
is  the  most  important  vocational  school  in  Denmark  he  will 
say  "the  people's  high  school,"  although  they  do  not  give 
vocational  instruction  per  se  at  all. 

The  principal  thing,  however,  that  these  schools  have 
contributed  is  the  new  spirit  which  has  been  awakened  in 
the  Danish  farmer.  This  spirit  they  seek  to  maintain 
through  the  founding  of  high  school  associations,  high 
school  homes,  lecture  associations,  auditorium  halls,  and 
gymnasiums  in  the  parishes  in  which  they  are  situated. 

The  Danish  farmers  have  been  called  the  best-informed 
in  the  world.  Distinction  of  class  or  rank  among  them  is 
disappearing  more  and  more;  and  not  only  among  them, 
but  generally  throughout  Denmark,  there  is  not  so  deep  a 
gap  between  the  educated  and  uneducated  as  in  many  other 
countries.  The  suspicious  reserve  which  in  many  places  is 
so  characteristic  of  the  country  people,  is  no  longer  char- 
acteristic of  the  Danes;  they  are  on  the  whole  open-minded 
and  democratic. 

"But  the  most  important  thing,"  as  Povlsen  says,  "is 

[851 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


the  influence  upon  the  religious  and  moral  feeling  of  the 
population."  One  of  the  most  vigorous  opponents  of  this 
type  of  school  has  said:  "We  must  admit  that  immorality 
disappears  where  the  people's  high  school  exists.  In  social 
circles  where  the  high  school  has  acquired  influence,  one 
finds  neither  drinking  nor  gambling,  nor  the  other  forms 
of  immorality.  Still,  one  must  not  suppose  that  among  the 
pupils  a  Puritanical  severity  rules.  They  love  dancing,  sport, 
play,  and  all  other  recreations."  In  consequence  of  the 
awakening  and  inspiring  influence  of  the  people's  high 
school,  one  finds  a  much  happier,  more  intimate,  finer,  and 
more  conscious  family  life. 

Finally,  according  to  Dr.  Norregaard,  whereas  the 
cultural  schools  have  created  a  dislike  for  manual  labor  in 
place  of  the  natural  love  for  it,  it  is  undeniable  that  wherever 
the  influence  of  the  people's  high  schools  has  been  most 
strongly  felt,  this  dislike  has  given  way  to  respect  and  liking. 
No  work  that  ought  to  be  done  is  contemptible  to  the  man 
trained  in  a  people's  high  school. 

"Grundtvig  is  a  monumental  figure  in  the  Danish  cul- 
tured and  spiritual  life,"  says  Madsen.  "No  one  has  left 
behind  him  such  deep  and  broad  traces  on  Danish  life  as 
he;  and  the  life  of  no  other  Dane  has  borne  such  rich  fruit 
and  is  still  so  living  among  the  people. 

"He  lived  and  worked  among  his  people  under  five  kings. 
He  reproved  them  when  they  sank  into  frivolity  and 
stupidity,  inspired  them  to  action  in  time  of  danger,  com- 
forted them  in  misfortune  and  healed  their  deepest  wounds. 

"His  life  was  long  and  rich  in  achievement  and  activity, 
and  continually  and  untiringly  battling  for  everything  that 
he  regarded  as  right.  His  name  is  united  for  all  time  to  the 
history  of  Denmark  and  is  becoming  widely  known  beyond 
the  limits  of  his  own  country." 

The  schools  of  Grundtvig  have  shown  the  value  of 
liberal  education  as  a  factor  in  the  vocational  life  of  a 
country.  These  people's  high  schools  have  never  loomed 
large  in  the  life  of  the  towns  or  cities  of  Denmark,  but  they 
have  transformed  the  country  life,  so  that  here  alone  of  the 

[361 


civilized  world  the  city  is  not  gaining  on  the  country. 
This  is  the  triumph  of  the  people's  high  schools.  They  are 
a  moral  and  religious  achievement  almost  without  parallel 
in  modern  times. 


[87] 


CHAPTER  III 

AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION  IN 
DENMARK 

GROWTH  OF  THE  MOVEMENT 

DENMARK,  like  Holland,  is  a  land  of  small  holdings. 
Although  its  area  is  less  than  16,000  square  miles — 
not  much  more  than  a  quarter  of  Illinois — in  1895 
it  contained,  besides  more  than  2,900  estates  and  nearly 
72,000  farms,  a  population  of  about  160,000  living  on  small 
plots  of  ground. 

The  thoroughly  domestic  character  of  the  rural  popula- 
tion is  shown  by  the  fact  that  about  83%  of  it,  according  to 
statistics  taken  in  1890,  consists  of  families  working  to- 
gether on  their  own  land,  while  only  about  17%  is  made 
up  of  those  who  are  working  for  others. 

The  significance  of  these  facts  appears  in  connection 
with  the  rise  of  agricultural  education.  In  no  other  country 
of  the  world  is  this  seen  to  have  been,  all  along,  so  largely 
due  to  the  striving  of  the  people  themselves. 

THE  APPRENTICE  SYSTEM 

The  first  step  towards  a  formal  training  in  agriculture 
tended,  at  the  same  time,  to  break  down  the  sharp  mediaeval 
distinctions  between  the  landowner  and  the  servant  who 
lived  on  his  land  and  was  forced  to  work  it  for  him.  This 
was  the  organization,  in  1769,  by  the  Royal  Agricultural 
Society  of  Denmark,  of  the  apprentice  system  for  farmers' 
sons,  which  still  exists,  and  is  the  chief  method  of  giving 
practical  training  in  agriculture. 

According  to  this  plan,  the  boys  are  sent  to  work  for 
three  years  on  large  farms  in  different  parts  of  the  country — 
usually  a  year  on  each  farm  —  in  order  that  they  may  have 
the  supervision  and  advice  of  expert  agriculturalists. 

[38] 


AGRICULTURAL  WINTER  SCHOOL,  LYNGBY,  DENMARK 


AGRICULTURAL  MUSEUM,  LYNGBY.  DENMARK 


HISTORICAL  MUSEUM  OF  DAIRY  UTENSILS,  DENMARK 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION  IN   DENMARK 

If  the  apprentice  boards  with  the  farmer's  family,  he 
pays  a  small  fee  for  the  first  year,  but  if  he  already  knows 
something  about  country  life  and  work,  he  often  gets  a 
small  salary  from  the  beginning;  in  other  words,  a  boy  from 
the  city  may  be  apprenticed  to  a  farmer,  but  a  premium  is 
paid  for  the  service  of  a  country  boy  whose  experience 
makes  him  immediately  of  more  use.  The  apprentice  takes 
part  in  all  the  farm  work,  and  his  activities  are  supervised 
and  controlled  in  several  ways  by  the  Society  itself.  For 
one  thing,  he  must  keep  a  diary  of  his  work  and  send  it  in 
for  inspection  at  the  end  of  each  year. 

By  1913  about  2,400  young  men  had  been  trained  in 
this  way. 

The  apprentice  system  was  afterwards  extended  to  in- 
clude special  training  in  dairy  work,  herding,  draining,  irri- 
gation, and  the  cultivation  of  root  crops. 

It  is  interesting  to  note  that  at  Christiania,  in  Norway, 
this  Danish  system  of  apprentice  training  in  agriculture 
has  been  combined  with  theoretical  teaching  in  a  winter 
school.  The  practical  course  consists  of  work  for  one  and  a 
half  years  (two  and  a  half  if  the  pupil  has  had  no  previous 
experience)  on  the  farm  of  a  man  whose  ability  is  recog- 
nized, and  the  theoretical  course  consists  of  thirteen  months 
of  study  during  two  winters  at  the  school  itself. 

This  unique  plan  of  teaching  has  been  in  operation  since 
1886  and  seems  to  be  working  successfully. 

AGRICULTURAL  ASSOCIATIONS 

At  the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth  century  the  tendency 
towards  organization  and  cooperation,  which  is  the  most 
noticeable  feature  of  Danish  rural  life  today,  began  to 
manifest  itself  in  the  formation  of  the  first  local  agricultural 
societies.  By  1913  there  were  119  of  these  associations. 
A  further  stage  of  development  was  reached  when  the 
Royal  Society  and  the  local  bodies  began  to  work  together. 
Machinery  for  this  was  provided  when  the  Royal  Society, 
in  1872,  began  to  allow  half  of  its  directors  to  be  elected  by 
the  local  societies  which  were  members  of  it. 

[39] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


Since  that  time  the  provincial  societies  have  been 
combining  in  groups  to  make  joint  associations,  which  work 
together  and  represent  a  large  section  of  the  country,  as, 
for  instance,  The  Association  of  Jutland  Agricultural 
Societies. 

Finally,  at  the  beginning  of  the  present  century,  the 
"small  farmers,"  i.e.,  those  who  own  or  rent  only  a  few 
acres,  began  to  form  organizations  of  their  own;  and  by 
1913  there  were  no  less  than  830  of  these  local  societies  of 
small  landholders.  These  are  organized  into  five  provincial 
associations;  and  these,  in  turn,  form  a  united  body  called 
the  "Associated  Danish  Associations  of  Small  Farmers," 
which,  in  negotiations  with  the  Government  or  with  various 
institutions,  represents  and  acts  for  them  all. 

Similarly,  there  are  series  of  organizations  to  promote 
all  the  special  branches  of  agriculture,  such  as  dairying, 
breeding  and  care  of  animals,  poultry  raising,  and  so  on. 
Some  idea  of  the  extent  of  the  specialization  and  the  mag- 
nitude of  the  movement  may  be  seen  from  the  number  of 
breeders'  associations,  which  in  1913  was  as  follows: 

Horse  breeders 267  societies 

Cattle  breeders 1,072 

Swine  breeders 240        " 

Sheep 104 

"Control  associations"  (for  testing  cows) .  .        592        " 


Total  2,275 

In  a  country,  not  a  quarter  as  large  as  our  state,  there 
are,  besides  the  associations  of  men  interested  in  breeding 
alone  —  nearly  2,300  of  them  —  and  proportionate  numbers 
for  the  other  branches  of  agriculture,  many  organizations 
for  insurance  and  loans,  to  say  nothing  of  several  thousand 
cooperative  production  associations. 

While  the  cooperative  associations  are  commercial  in 
their  aims,  the  others  are  primarily  patriotic  and  educational; 
that  is,  they  work  for  the  welfare  of  the  country.  One  of 
the  most  practical  forms  that  this  work  takes  is  the  founda- 

[40] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION  IN  DENMARK 

tion  and  maintenance,  not  merely  of  technical  agricultural 
schools,  but  of  the  so-called  "people's  high  schools,"  the 
chief  object  of  which  is  to  perpetuate  the  spirit  of  patriotism 
and  intelligent  cooperation  that  led  to  their  establishment. 
It  was  not  until  1892  that  the  Government  began  to  sub- 
sidize these  private  enterprises  in  educational  matters. 

PEOPLE'S  HIGH  SCHOOLS 

The  idea  of  the  "people's  high  school"  can  be  traced 
back  to  the  great  educator,  Bishop  Grundtvig,  who,  during 
the  first  half  of  the  nineteenth  century,  promulgated  the  the- 
ories that  have  revolutionized  the  social  and  intellectual 
ideals  of  Denmark  and  given  her  once  more  a  worthy  place 
among  the  nations  of  Europe. 

The  principle  on  which  Grundtvig's  high  schools  were 
founded  is  this:  That  the  transition  years  between  child- 
hood and  manhood  are  the  least  favorable  for  intellectual 
influences,  and  indeed  for  intellectual  activity,  and  that  the 
years  from  18  to  25  are  the  period  when  young  people  are 
most  open  to  intellectual  influences  and  most  receptive. 
Grundtvig  held  that  childhood  should  be  regarded  as  one 
stage  of  development,  and  that  the  education  given  during 
that  period  should  then  be  allowed  to  ripen  during  the  years 
of  adolescence,  until  the  child  had  become  a  man,  and  had 
passed  through  a  time  of  practical  experience,  and  that 
then  only  should  begin  a  new  period  of  preparation  for  life. 
And  this  preparation  should  be  not  book-learning,  but  in- 
struction that  would  bring  inspiration  into  the  daily  lives 
of  the  common  people  and  make  them  worth  more  to  them- 
selves and  to  their  country. 

The  first  "people's  high  school"  founded  to  carry  out 
Grundtvig's  ideas  was  the  Farmers'  High  School  established 
at  Rodding  in  1844;  but  it  was  not  until  after  the  disastrous 
end  of  the  war  with  Germany,  in  1864,  that  the  theory  of 
educating  the  masses  of  the  people  towards  a  national 
ideal  took  deep  root  and  spread.  Between  1844  and  1864, 
11  such  high  schools  were  founded;  between  1864  and  1874, 
43  were  added,  and  between  1874  and  1904,  54  others, 

[41] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


making  a  total  of  98  —  all  within  a  little  tract  of  land 
which,  if  not  broken  up  by  the  sea,  would  measure  less  than 
130  miles  in  length  and  breadth. 

AGRICULTURAL  COUNSELLORS 

Another  force  in  the  education  of  the  Danish  farmer 
introduced  by  the  agricultural  associations  is  the  work  of 
the  "agricultural  counsellor,"  whose  business  it  is  to  advise 
adult  farmers,  to  make  experiments,  to  give  lectures  and 
demonstrations,  and  to  conduct  excursions  for  the  purpose 
of  studying  agricultural  methods  in  different  parts  of  the 
country. 

The  first  of  these  counsellors  was  appointed  by  the  Royal 
Agricultural  Society  in  1862  to  act  as  adviser  in  dairy  work. 
He  trained  several  assistants,  who  soon  received  similar 
appointments  from  local  agricultural  societies.  In  1876, 
a  counsellor  was  appointed  by  the  Royal  Agricultural 
Society  to  give  advice  on  the  breeding  and  care  of  animals, 
and  in  1882,  one  for  plant  culture.  At  the  end  of  the 
eighties  the  State  took  up  the  good  work,  appointing  a 
counsellor  for  agricultural  chemistry,  two  counsellors  for 
plant  culture,  four  for  the  breeding  and  care  of  animals, 
four  for  dairy  work,  two  for  agricultural  machinery,  one 
for  horticulture,  one  for  plant  pathology,  one  for  agricul- 
tural and  forest  zoology,  and  two  to  look  after  Danish 
agricultural  interests  abroad  (in  England  and  Germany). 
The  State  also  began  to  contribute  towards  the  salaries  of 
counsellors  employed  by  associations.  There  are  now 
more  than  100  of  these  men  employed  both  by  the  State 
and  by  agricultural  societies  to  educate  and  help  the  adult 
farmer. 

SURVEY  OF  THE  SYSTEM 

The  Danish  system  of  agricultural  education  today, 
then,  includes  four  features : 

(1)  The  apprentice  system,  by  which  boys  who  have 
completed  the  elementary  school  system  work  for  three 

[48] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION   IN   DENMARK 

years  on  the  farms  of  experts   in  order  to  get   practical 
experience. 

(2)  The  people's  high  schools,  which  all  young  people 
of  eighteenth  or  more  are  urged  to  attend  for  one  season. 
For  the  boys  there  is  usually  a  course  of  five  or  six  months 
during  the  winter;  for  the  girls  a  three-months'  course  in 
summer.     While  agricultural  instruction  is  given  in  some 
of  these  schools  (not  all),  their  main  purpose  is  to  inculcate 
a  love  of  home  and  country. 

(3)  The  special  agricultural  schools,  which  are  recom- 
mended after  a  course  at  a  people's  high  school. 

(4)  The   agricultural   counsellors,    whose  work   supple- 
ments that  of  the  schools. 

THE  AGRICULTURAL  COLLEGE  AT  COPENHAGEN 

The  Danish  system  of  agricultural  schools  is  planned 
on  the  hypothesis  that  the  students  have  spent  a  winter  at 
a  "people's  high  school,"  and  that  the  teachers  have  been 
trained  at  the  Royal  Veterinary  and  Agricultural  College 
in  Copenhagen,  which  was  founded  in  1856  as  a  State  in- 
stitution for  advanced  study  in  agricultural  subjects. 

It  trains  farmers,  gardeners,  foresters,  veterinaries,  and 
surveyors.  It  had  166  students  in  the  year  1910-11.  The 
course  in  agriculture  consists  of  a  general  course  of  twenty 
months,  and  four  "extension  courses"  of  twenty  months 
each. 

Anyone  may  enter  the  school  as  an  "extraordinary 
student,"  but  those  planning  to  take  the  examination  at 
the  end  of  the  extension  courses  must  qualify  by  taking 
an  entrance  examination.  Usually  about  half  the  students 
receive  free  instruction  and  half  of  these  receive  scholar- 
ships which  pay  them  from  five  to  six  dollars  a  month.  The 
course  of  instruction  includes  the  usual  subjects  taught  in 
an  agricultural  college.  The  so-called  "extension  courses" 
provide  an  opportunity  for  specializing  in  the  various 
departments  of  agriculture.  In  this  college  are  trained  most 
of  the  teachers  in  the  agricultural  schools  of  Denmark. 

[43] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


SUMMARY  OF  THE  AGRICULTURAL  SCHOOLS 

A  summary  of  the  other  schools  in  the  kingdom  that 
give  agricultural  education,  from  "A  Short  Survey  of  the 
Danish  Agriculture,"  published  by  the  Royal  Danish 
Agricultural  Society  in  1913,  appears  in  the  following  table: 


Number  of 
Schools 

Length  of 
Courses  in 
Months 

AVERAGE  NUM- 
BER OF  HOURS 

Number  of 
Students 

,      | 
S"3  § 
"8  S-° 

£•§£ 

Natural 
Sciences 

a.  Agricultural  schools  proper  

13 

3 

2 

3 
3 

35 

5-6-9 

5-6 

4-8 

5-12 
5 

5 

460 

323 
407 

414 

226 

106 

262 

184 
260 

345 
107 

82 

1014 

271 
138 

63 
89 

1341 

6.  Agricultural  schools  for  small  lot  holders 
((Husmaend)  

c    Dairy  schools  

d.  Horticultural  schools  (including  practical 
instruction)  

e.  People's  high  schools  with  special  courses 
in  agriculture  

/.   People's    high    schools    without    special 
agricultural  courses,  but  giving  more 
than  50  hours  of  agricultural  instruction 
to  the  male  students  

Only  one  school,  the  Classenske  Agricultural  School  at 
Naesgaard,  which  has  a  course  of  seventeen  months,  at- 
tempts to  teach  both  practice  and  theory. 

In  1910-11,  the  total  enrollment  in  agricultural  schools 
and  people's  high  schools  was  4,945  men  and  3,148  women, 
making  a  total  of  8,093. 

THE  AGRICULTURAL  SCHOOL  AT  DALUM 

Of  the  agricultural  schools  proper,  the  one  at  Dalum  is 
typical.  It  was  opened  in  1886  by  Jorgen  Petersen  as  a 
private  school  for  agricultural  instruction.  Since  his  death 
in  1908  the  school,  with  the  grounds  adjacent,  has  been 
managed  by  a  small  board  chosen  by  two  associations,  one 
composed  of  old  students  of  the  school,  the  second  of  other 
friends  of  the  school.  During  the  26  years  between  1886 
and  1912  the  school  has  given  instruction  to  4,267  students, 
of  whom  3,198  were  general  farmers,  652  dairymen,  and 

[44] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION  IN  DENMARK 

47  "control  assistants."  In  January,  1914,  there  were 
about  140  in  the  general  agricultural  department  and  45 
in  the  dairy  school,  taught  by  nine  regular  teachers,  seven 
of  whom  were  graduates  of  the  Agricultural  College  of 
Copenhagen.  The  exceptions  were  the  director  himself 
and  the  teacher  of  gymnastics.  Many  special  lectures  are 
given  during  the  year  in  science  and  technology  as  well  as 
in  subjects  of  general  interest. 

The  Dalum  school  offers  the  following  courses:  (1) 
Courses  for  farmers :  (a)  a  six-months'  course,  from  Novem- 
ber to  May;  (b)  a  nine-months'  course,  from  November  to 
July;  (c)  a  three-months'  course,  from  May  to  July;  (2) 
course  for  dairymen,  eight  months  from  September  to  April ; 
(3)  course  for  "control  assistants,"  one  month,  in  Oc- 
tober. The  nine-months'  course  for  farmers  is  merely  the 
six-months'  course  plus  the  three-months'  course,  but  they 
are  scheduled  separately,  as  students  from  other  schools  of 
agriculture  and  from  other  classes  of  this  school  may  wish 
to  enter  for  the  three-months'  supplementary  course. 

Students  admitted  to  this  school  must  be  ineteen  years  of 
age  and  must  have  had  several  years'  experience  in  practical 
farming  and  considerable  knowledge  of  the  usual  elementary 
school  subjects.  Students  are  urged  to  prepare  for  admis- 
sion by  taking  a  winter  course  in  one  of  the  "people's  high 
schools." 

The  subjects  of  instruction  are  chemistry,  physics, 
botany,  mathematics,  drawing,  Danish,  agricultural 
accounting,  gymnastics,  history  of  agricultural  develop- 
ment, geology,  dairying,  common  business  practice,  study 
of  agricultural  tools  and  machines,  cultivation  of  plants, 
and  breeding  and  care  of  domestic  animals.  Of  course 
these  are  all  studied  in  their  practical  relation  to  agriculture 
— time  would  not  permit  anything  else  even  if  it  were  desir- 
able. The  students,  in  a  word,  are  studying  agriculture 
and  such  other  subjects  as  are  related  to  it.  During  the 
first  months  in  Dalum  the  students  are  expected  to  spend 
their  evenings  in  general  reading,  and  throughout  the  course 
they  attend  lectures  and  discussions  on  history,  social 

[45] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


economy,  and  so  forth,  given  by  the  teachers  themselves  or 
by  prominent  men  from  other  institutions. 

The  method  of  instruction  is  by  lectures,  laboratory 
work,  and  quizzes.  Textbooks  are  used  to  some  extent, 
but  not  nearly  so  much  as  in  American  schools.  Every 
lesson  hour  I  saw  began  with  a  song  from  a  hymn-book 
containing  historical,  patriotic,  and  religious  songs,  with- 
out the  music.  The  students  in  classes  of  from  45  to  140 
would  all  sing  the  air,  without  accompaniment,  through 
seven  or  eight  stanzas,  reciting  the  achievements  of  Danish 
great  men,  and  then  settle  down  to — perhaps — a  lesson  on 
fertilizers.  The  teachers  explained  to  me  that  such  a  song 
brought  the  boys  together  in  spirit  as  they  were  in  body, 
and  led  to  better  attention  and  better  work.  I  believe  they 
were  right. 

Most  of  the  students  have  to  content  themselves  with  the 
six-months'  course,  as  work  on  the  farm  begins  about  May 
first.  Some,  however,  wish  to  pursue  their  studies  during 
the  spring  months  when  the  practical  application  of  the 
theory  they  have  been  taught  during  the  winter,  can  best 
be  made.  As  students  of  former  classes  and  other  institu- 
tions may  enter  at  this  point,  a  little  time  is  given  to  general 
instruction  and  discussion.  Some  of  the  work  in  the  summer 
term  is  thus  described  in  the  school  course  of  study: 

Business  calculations,  making  estimates,  laying  plans 
for  the  transaction  of  business  connected  with  farming. 

Communication  of  the  results  of  the  latest  experiments 
or  lectures  on  such  subjects  as  are  of  special  interest  to 
present-day  farmers. 

Study  of  wild  plants,  with  lectures  and  practice  in 
distinguishing  them;  special  stress  upon  knowledge  of 
injurious  weeds  and  ways  of  combating  their  growth. 

Practice  in  recognizing  the  most  commonly  occurring 
poisonous  plants,  injurious  animals,  and  parasitic  fungi,  in 
the  various  stages  of  their  development;  methods  of  com- 
bating them. 

Study  of  the  most  important  cultivated  plants,  races, 
and  species. 

[461 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION   IN   DENMARK 

Exercises  to  enable  the  students  to  recognize  the  most 
important  grasses  in  bloom  and  not  in  bloom,  with  study 
of  the  various  plants  found  in  a  certain  field;  in  connection 
with  this  study,  the  subject  of  the  restoration  of  exhausted 
grass-fields  is  taken  up. 

Practice  in  seed-determination;  use  of  and  most  ad- 
vantageous ways  of  procuring  seed. 

Exercises  in  qualitative  analysis,  leading  to  a  knowl- 
edge of  the  most  important  materials  for  fertilization  and 
fodder. 

Carrying  on  experiment  plots  to  illustrate  the  reproduc- 
tion and  development  of  plants. 

Visits  to  good  droves  of  cattle  and  well-cultivated 
fields  in  Funen. 

COURSE  FOR  DAIRYMEN 

The  course  for  dairymen  is  eight  months  in  length, 
beginning  in  September.  A  special  lecture  hall  and  special 
chemical  and  bacteriological  laboratories  have  been  pro- 
vided for  this  department,  which  is,  to  a  very  large  degree, 
an  independent  school. 

The  course  of  study  includes  chemistry,  physics,  applied 
mechanics,  bacteriology,  treatment  and  care  of  domestic 
animals,  theory  of  dairying,  mathematics,  keeping  accounts, 
practical  exercises  in  investigation  of  milk,  drawing,  writing, 
and  gymnastics.  The  methods  of  instruction  include 
lectures,  quizzes,  and  practical  exercises  in  the  laboratory, 
creamery,  and  dairy  barn. 

CONTROL  ASSISTANTS 

It  is  the  business  of  the  Danish  "control  assistants"  to 
watch  very  carefully  the  methods  employed  by  the  members 
of  the  cooperative  dairies  in  order  to  keep  up  the  standard 
of  butter  sold  by  them.  This  requires  careful  training 
such  as  is  given  in  the  more  important  dairy  schools.  The 
courses  in  Dalum  are  given  to  able  young  men  and  women 
in  the  month  of  October.  These  persons  must  have  pre- 
viously taken  a  course  in  an  agricultural  or  other  dairy 

[47] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


school.  They  are  required  to  have,  on  entering,  consider- 
able practical  knowledge  and  skill  in  caring  for  cattle,  a 
reasonable  skill  in  writing  and  mathematics,  and  maturity 
enough  to  be  able  to  profit  by  the  instruction. 

The  instruction  comprises; 

The  weighing  and  testing  of  milk  in  the  barns. 

The  use  of  Dr.  Gerber's  apparatus  for  determining  the 
amount  of  butter-fat  in  milk. 

Practice  in  keeping  accounts  of  the  value  of  the  pro- 
duct of  individual  animals,  taking  into  consideration  food 
consumed  and  milk  and  butter  produced. 

Practice  in  the  various  systems  of  accounting  used  in 
the  dairies. 

Lectures  on  milking,  qualities  of  milk,  feeding  of  stock, 
etc. 

The  Dalum  school  has  an  extensive  and  valuable  equip- 
ment for  carrying  on  its  work,  consisting  of: 

Laboratories  for  chemistry  and  bacteriology  and  for 
investigating  various  agricultural  and  dairy  products  and 
auxiliary  materials  used  hi  dairies. 

A  collection  of  physical  apparatus,  a  botanical,  an 
anatomical,  a  geological,  and  a  zoological  collection,  and  a 
collection  of  manuals  and  textbooks  on  dairy  work. 

Instruments  and  apparatus  for  surveying,  for  determin- 
ing the  butter-fat  in  milk,  for  microscropic  investigations, 
and  for  experiments  in  plant  and  seed  culture. 

An  exhibition  ground. 

An  agricultural  museum  illustrating  by  means  of  tools 
and  machines  the  historical  development  of  agriculture  and 
dairying. 

A  farm  of  about  100  acres,  carried  on  by  practical 
farmers,  so  that  students  of  the  school  can  observe  the  work 
of  managing  a  model  farm. 

A  stock  of  cattle,  including  about  thirty-five  cows, 
besides  young  cattle,  and  about  100  hogs,  by  means  of  which 
instruction  in  the  care  and  feeding  of  these  animals  is  illu- 
strated for  the  students. 

A  practical  dairy  in  which,  in  addition  to  the  milk  from 

[48] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION  IN  DENMARK 

the  school  farm,  milk  purchased  from  adjacent  farms  is 
made  into  butter.  This  dairy  is  equipped  with  the  best 
dairy  machinery,  run  by  steam  or  electricity,  and  provided 
with  apparatus  for  investigating  milk. 

A  three-acre  field  for  exercise  and  games. 

The  expenses  of  the  students  are  small,  varying  in  the 
different  courses.  In  the  six-months'  course  the  expense  for 
room,  board,  and  instruction  is  about  $90.  Students  pay  by 
the  month  on  a  graduated  scale,  so  that  the  last  month  costs 
only  about  half  as  much  as  the  first.  This  encourages  them 
to  complete  the  course.  They  pay  extra  for  light  and  heat, 
books,  paper,  medical  attendance,  and  the  use  of  the  school 
bathrooms.  A  certain  number,  however,  in  all  the  courses 
may  receive  aid  from  the  State  or  from  the  Royal  Agricul- 
tural Society  to  the  amount  of  about  $8  per  month. 

THE  SCHOOL  FOR  SMALL  FARMERS  AT  ODENSE 

The  school  for  small  farmers  near  Odense  is  one  of 
three  of  the  kind  in  Denmark.  In  1907  the  cooperative 
associations  of  small  holders  in  the  diocese  of  Funen  met 
and  decided  to  establish  a  school  owned  and  controlled  by 
themselves,  and  a  year  later,  the  school  at  Odense  was 
opened.  From  the  beginning  it  was  successful.  It  now  has 
about  ninety  students  in  courses  varying  from  six  days  to 
five  months.  The  school  is  managed  by  a  board  of  direc- 
tors composed  of  the  presidents  of  the  cooperative  associa- 
tions of  small  farmers  of  Funen,  Seeland,  Jutland,  Bolland- 
Falster  and  Bornholm,  the  director  of  the  Small  Farmer's 
Loan  Association,  small  holders  in  the  neighboring  parishes, 
and  the  director  of  the  school.  It  receives  State  aid  to  the 
amount  of  about  $750  per  year  in  addition  to  amounts 
granted  to  students  in  attendance. 

The  school  aims  to  provide  both  general  and  technical 
instruction  for  its  students,  male  and  female,  with  a  view 
to  enabling  them  to  fill  their  places,  not  only  as  farmers, 
housewives,  and  mechanics,  but  as  citizens  of  the  common- 
wealth. Thus  it  tries  to  secure  more  economic  indepen- 
dence for  the  small  farmers,  by  showing  them  what  can 

[491 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


be  done  with  the  Danish  soil  by  the  thoughtful  applica- 
tion of  science  to  agriculture.  It  works  for  the  extension 
of  such  knowledge  as  will  assist  the  economic  development 
of  agriculture  by  educating  the  small  farmer  and  his  wife 
and  the  country  mechanic  and  his  wife.  Finally,  it  attempts 
to  provide  that  general  knowledge  and  culture  which  will 
elevate  the  social  life  of  man,  and,  in  a  measure,  satisfy  the 
legitimate  craving  of  every  man  and  woman  to  participate 
in  the  spiritual  life  of  the  race.  This  is  an  ambitious  pro- 
gram, but  the  school  strives  to  follow  it.  In  every  long 
course  the  morning  hours  are  devoted  to  general  education, 
the  afternoon  to  technical  subjects.  Even  in  the  short 
courses  one  hour  a  day  is  given  to  general  education. 

The  school  offers  the  following  courses: 

A  five-months'  winter  course  for  men,  from  November 
to  March. 

A  three-  and  a  five-months'  summer  course  for  women, 
beginning  in  May. 

A  one-month's  course  for  men  and  women  as  "control 
assistants." 

A  five-months'  winter  course  for  country  mechanics. 

Numerous  short  courses  of  from  eight  to  fourteen  days' 
duration,  for  both  men  and  women. 

Under  this  last  head  are  advertised: 

Two-week  courses  for  men  in  general  agriculture,  do- 
mestic animals,  gardening,  and  agricultural  accounting,  in 
January  and  February. 

Two- week  courses  for  men  in  accounting,  social  economy, 
Danish,  and  agriculture,  in  March. 

One-week  course  for  men  in  gardening,  poultry-raising, 
bee  culture,  accounting,  and  small  farming,  in  July. 

Two-week  courses  in  household  economics,  gardening, 
poultry-keeping,  and  bee  culture,  in  May,  July,  September, 
and  January. 

One-week  course  in  household  economics,  gardening, 
and  poultry-keeping,  in  July  and  September. 

During  eleven  out  of  the  twelve  months  of  the  year  short 
courses  are  in  operation  in  which  people  who  have  trouble 

[50] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION   IN   DENMARK 

with  their  bees,  poultry  or  any  other  phase  of  agriculture, 
can  receive  assistance.  The  country  communes  generally 
grant  aid  to  persons  desiring  to  take  these  courses. 

In  the  longer  courses  both  men  and  women  receive 
instruction  in  such  general  subjects  as  the  Danish  language 
and  literature,  history,  sociology,  mathematics,  chemistry, 
physics,  botany,  hygiene,  and  gymnastics. 

The  boys  receive,  in  addition,  instruction  in  agriculture, 
including  such  subjects  as  the  composition  and  preparation 
of  the  soil,  use  of  seed,  succession  of  crops,  eradication  of 
weeds,  use  of  fertilizers,  natural  and  artificial,  cultivation 
of  plants,  building,  domestic  animals,  cattle  raising,  feeding, 
judging  of  cattle  by  external  appearance,  milking,  agricul- 
tural accounting,  surveying,  gardening,  poultry  raising, 
rabbit  raising,  and  bee  culture. 

The  girls,  besides  the  course  in  general  subjects  above 
mentioned,  receive  instruction  in  cooking,  gardening,  theory 
of  nutrition,  household  accounting,  knitting,  darning,  patch- 
ing, fine  handwork,  making  of  dresses  and  undergarments, 
cleaning,  laundry  work,  poultry  raising,  keeping  of  bees  and 
rabbits,  and  other  subjects. 

An  opportunity  for  a  course  in  practical  work  on  the 
school  farm  is  given  to  boys  who  have  taken  the  five-months' 
winter  course.  The  school  runs  a  model  "small  farm"  of  sev- 
en acres,  supplied  with  six  cows,  a  few  pigs,  and  other  stock, 
showing  that  it  is  possible  for  a  family  to  make  a  good  liv- 
ing in  similar  circumstances.  If  the  small  farm  needs  horses 
or  other  equipment  for  demonstration  purposes,  these  are 
supplied  by  the  "large  farm"  and  charged  to  the  account 
of  the  small  farm. 

The  "large  farm"  consists  of  twenty -four  acre,  with 
horses,  wagons,  and  farm  implements,  about  twenty  cows, 
and  a  number  of  hogs,  poultry,  and  so  forth,  to  show  the 
management  of  a  larger  piece  of  ground.  About  fourteen 
acres  more  are  laid  out  in  gardens  and  orchards,  every  girl 
having  a  small  garden  to  manage  during  the  summer  courses. 

The  buildings  are  good  and  the  teachers  and  students 
are  thoroughly  interested  in  the  work. 

151] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


The  other  agricultural  schools  in  Denmark  are  organ- 
ized along  the  same  lines. 

SUMMARY 

In  Denmark  we  have  the  working  out,  in  a  thoroughly 
satisfactory  way,  of  the  principle  of  democracy  as  applied 
to  education.  Bishop  Grundtvig  inspired  men  of  the  people 
to  found  people's  high  schools  on  their  own  initiative.  These 
schools  awakened  the  intelligence  of  the  farmer  class  and 
made  the  farmers  themselves  realize  their  own  need  of 
technical  instruction.  The  work  of  the  agricultural  coun- 
sellors deepened  and  spread  this  conviction.  These  two 
influences,  working  together,  led  to  the  establishment  of  two 
classes  of  agricultural  schools,  those  for  farmers  in  general, 
of  which  Dalum  is  an  example,  and  those  intended  to  meet 
the  special  needs  of  the  small  landholder,  such  as  that  at, 
Odense.  As  the  spirit  of  cooperation  developed,  associa- 
tions began  to  found  schools,  and  finally  the  State  took  up 
and  supplemented  the  work,  chiefly  by  means  of  subsidies 
to  the  schools  and  by  the  appointment  of  more  agricultural 
counsellors. 

The  plan  works  splendidly  because  it  has  grown  gradually 
out  of  the  needs  of  an  intelligent,  high-minded,  and  am- 
bitious people,  and  has  been  adapted  to  meet  those  needs 
in  the  most  practical  manner. 


[52] 


CHAPTER  IV 

AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION  IN  IRELAND 

ORGANIZATION  OF  A  SPECIAL  DEPARTMENT 

THE  present  organization  of  agricultural  and  technical 
instruction  in  Ireland  dates  from  the  year  1900.  It 
is  the  result  of  the  work  of  a  committee  headed  by 
Sir  Horace  Plunkett  and  composed  of  Irish  members  of 
Parliament  and  other  Irishmen  of  all  shades  of  political 
opinion.  They  secured  the  passage  of  the  Agricultural  and 
Technical  Instruction  Act  in  1899.  The  Department  cre- 
ated by  this  Act  is  so  constituted  "as  to  be  representative 
at  once  of  the  Crown,  the  recently  created  local  government 
bodies  of  the  country,  and  those  classes  of  people  with  whom 
its  work  is  chiefly  concerned;  and  to  give  to  this  authority 
the  function  of  aiding,  improving,  and  developing  the  agri- 
culture, fisheries,  and  other  industries  of  Ireland,  in  so  far 
as  may  be  proper  to  such  a  Department,  and  in  such  manner 
as  to  stimulate  and  strengthen  the  self-reliance  of  the 
people." 

The  Department  has  a  paid  staff  with  a  central  office  in 
Dublin.  It  consists  of  a  president  who  is  the  chief  secretary 
for  Ireland,  a  vice-president,  a  secretary,  and  two  assistant 
secretaries  (one  for  agriculture  and  one  for  technical  in- 
struction), with  a  staff  of  assistants.  The  two  assistant 
secretaries,  George  Fletcher  for  technical  instruction,  and 
J.  R.  Campbell  for  agriculture,  are  the  real  expert  heads  of 
their  respective  sections,  and  practically  administer  the 
agricultural  and  technical  schools.  There  has  been  placed 
at  the  disposal  of  the  Department  and  the  boards  appointed 
to  work  with  it  an  endowment  which  in  1912  amounted  to 
about  $1,000,000. 

Immediately  after  the  organization  of  the  Department, 
steps  were  taken  to  establish,  in  accordance  with  the  pro- 

[53] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


visions  of  the  Act,  a  Council  of  Agriculture,  an  Agricultural 
Board,  and  a  Board  of  Technical  Instruction;  and  authority 
was  given  to  the  County  Councils  and  to  the  County  Borough 
Councils  for  the  appointment  of  members  of  these  bodies. 
These  boards  advise  and  cooperate  with  the  Department. 

The  Council  of  Agriculture  consists  of  104  members,  68 
appointed  by  the  County  Councils  and  34  by  the  Depart- 
ment. The  president  and  vice-president  of  the  Depart- 
ment are  ex-officio  members.  The  Council  of  Agriculture 
elects  eight  members  of  the  Agricultural  Board  and  four 
members  of  the  Board  of  Technical  Instruction.  The  mem- 
bers of  the  Agricultural  Board,  representing  each  of  the 
four  provinces  of  Ireland,  constitute  separate  committees 
of  the  Council,  styled  provincial  committees.  Each  of  these 
provincial  committees  appoints  two  persons  to  be  members 
of  the  Agricultural  Board,  and  one  person  to  be  a  member 
of  the  Board  of  Technical  Instruction.  The  Agricultural 
Board  is  therefore  composed  of  twelve  persons,  eight  ap- 
pointed by  the  provincial  committees  of  the  Council  of  Agr- 
iculture, and  four  by  the  Department.  The  members  of  the 
board  hold  office  for  three  years. 

"That  portion  of  the  Department's  endowment  fund 
intended  for  agriculture,  rural  industries,  and  sea  and  in- 
land fisheries,  with  the  exception  of  a  special  sum  of  $50,000 
for  sea  fisheries  and  certain  specified  capital  sums,  must  be 
administered  by  the  Department  with  the  concurrence  of 
the  Agricultural  Board.  In  addition  to  their  control  of  all 
such  expenditure,  this  board  acts  as  an  advisory  board  to 
the  Department  in  all  matters  submitted  to  them  by  the 
Department  in  connection  with  the  purposes  of  agriculture 
and  other  rural  industries." 

The  Board  of  Technical  Instruction  consists  of  21  mem- 
bers, 15  appointed  by  local  authority,  one  nominated  by  the 
Commissioners  of  National  Education  (elementary  schools), 
one  by  the  Intermediate  Education  Board  (secondary 
schools),  and  four  by  the  Department.  The  duties  of  the 
Board  of  Technical  Instruction  are  analogous  to  those  of 
the  Agricultural  Board. 

[54] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION   IN  IRELAND 

The  Consultative  Committee  of  Education  consists  of 
the  vice-president  of  the  Department  as  chairman,  and  one 
person  appointed  by  each  of  the  following  bodies:  the 
Commissioners  of  National  Education,  the  Intermediate 
Education  Board,  the  Agricultural  Board,  and  the  Board  of 
Technical  Instruction.  The  function  of  this  committee  is 
to  coordinate  educational  administration.  Its  action  is 
purely  advisory. 

The  $1,000,000  per  year  provided  for  the  support  of  the 
Department  is  derived  from  certain  funds  placed  at  its 
disposal  by  the  Government,  and  by  local  taxation. 

The  work  of  the  Agricultural  Board  is  not  confined  to 
providing  technical  instruction  for  farmers,  but  includes 
also  scientific  investigations,  surveys,  and  experiments 
related  to  agriculture,  fisheries,  and  other  industries.  A 
considerable  portion  of  the  funds  of  the  Department  is 
spent  in  these  investigations,  which  cover  a  very  wide  field 
of  work.  The  Department,  however,  look  upon  educational 
work  as  the  most  powerful  and  permanent  means  of  pro- 
moting the  welfare  of  Ireland.  However  valuable  and  exten- 
sive the  investigations  and  surveys  may  be,  they  cannot  by 
themselves  produce  deep  and  abiding  results  without  a  sys- 
tem of  education  that  will  train  the  intelligence  and  the  will, 
and  give  to  the  individual  the  skill  and  resourcefulness  that 
can  be  acquired  in  no  other  way.  The  Department  feel 
that  "however  imperfect  their  forms  of  effort  may  be  or 
whatever  the  conditions  which  may  prevail  in  Ireland,  if  the 
people  be  placed  in  full  possession  of  the  benefits  of  such  an 
educational  system  they  will  have  the  instrument  of  their 
own  salvation  in  their  hands." 

The  development  of  the  scheme  for  agricultural  in- 
struction has  been  summarized  by  the  assistant  secretary, 
J.  R.  Campbell,  in  a  memorandum  published  in  1907. 
This  memorandum  gives  a  very  clear  account  of  the 
experiment  between  the  years  1900-1907  and  is  quoted 
here  at  length,  with  additions  from  the  Twelfth  Annual 
Report  of  the  Department,  which  brings  the  work  down 
to  1912. 

155] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


INITIAL  PROCEDURE 

The  Agricultural  Branch  of  the  Department  of  Agricul- 
ture and  Technical  Instruction  for  Ireland  was  started  in 
the  autumn  of  1900.  The  first  duty  of  the  staff  was  that  of 
attending  meetings  of  County  Councils,  explaining  to  them 
the  provisions  of  the  Act,  the  steps  to  be  taken  to  put  it 
into  operation;  obtaining  and  considering  suggestions  both 
in  private  and  in  public  as  to  what  the  Department  should 
do  for  agricultural  development,  and  making  acquaintance 
with  the  people  whom  the  Act  was  intended  to  benefit. 
Advantage  was  taken  of  these  visits  to  study  the  peculiarities 
of  Irish  agriculture  in  respect  to  the  size  of  the  holdings,  the 
farm  buildings,  the  tillage  of  the  land,  the  crops  grown,  the 
class  of  stock  raised,  and  the  condition  of  dairying,  horti- 
culture, and  poultry-keeping.  Regard  was  had  also  to  the 
social  position  of  the  farmer  himself,  his  business  methods, 
capital,  general  and  technical  education,  and  to  some  extent 
his  aspirations. 

CONCLUSIONS  ARRIVED  AT 

The  conclusions  arrived  at  after  this  preliminary  study 
of  the  conditions  under  which  the  Department  had  to  work 
may  be  summarized  as  follows: 

(1)  That  the  most  important  work  which  the  Depart- 
ment had  to  perform  was  that  of  laying  the  foundation  of  a 
permanent  system  of  agricultural  education.     The  immedi- 
ate introduction  of  a  system  of  agricultural  education  such 
as  exists  in  other  countries  was  seen  to  be  impracticable,  as 
in  the  first  instance  the  conditions  of  agriculture  in  Ireland 
and  the  circumstances  of  the  farmers  differed  from  those  of 
most  other  countries,  particularly  with  respect  to  the  size 
of  the  farms,  the  ability  of  the  farmer  to  pay  fees,  the  desire 
of  most  young  men  to  leave  the  land,  the  desire  for  an  agri- 
cultural education,  and  the  backwardness  of  tillage  in  some 
districts;  while,  in  the  second  place,  no  provision  had  been 
made  in  Ireland  for  the  training  of  teachers. 

(2)  That  in  the  application  of  the  Department's  En- 
dowment to  aid  in  the  development  of  agriculture  it  was 

[56] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION  IN   IRELAND 

desirable  as  far  as  practical  to  work  through  the  local 
authorities.  It  was  further  considered  desirable  to  com- 
mence with  a  subject  in  which  everybody  could  take  part, 
and  which  everybody  understood — namely,  the  improve- 
ment of  live  stock. 

(3)  That  a  large  number  of  the  proposed  projects  on 
which  the  country  desired  the  Department  to  embark  would 
in  the  first  instance  have  to  be  undertaken  by  the  Depart- 
ment's officers  themselves,  afterwards  gradually  transferring 
the  work  and  the  funds  necessary  for  carrying  it  on  to  the 
local  authorities. 

DIVISION  OF  WORK 

The  work  of  the  Agricultural  Branch  may  be  divided 
into — 

(a)  That  which  is  administered  jointly  by  the  local 
authorities  and  the  Department,  and 

(b)  That  which  is  administered  by  the  Department 
directly  from  the  central  offices. 

Generally  speaking,  when  the  work  is  such  that  the 
county  can  be  made  the  unit  for  the  purposes  of  administra- 
tion, and  particularly  where  such  an  arrangement  would 
enable  each  district  to  receive  benefits  proportionate  to  its 
contribution,  the  administration  of  the  schemes  is  delegated 
to  the  local  authority;  such,  for  example,  is  the  procedure 
adopted  with  schemes  for  encouraging  improvement  in 
live  stock  and  schemes  of  itinerant  instruction  in  various 
branches  of  agriculture.  On  the  other  hand,  work  for 
which  the  county  cannot  be  conveniently  made  the  unit, 
and  which  does  not  apply  equally  to  the  whole  county,  is 
administered  directly  from  the  Department's  offices,  such, 
for  example,  as  the  investigation  of  special  outbreaks  of 
diseases  of  stock,  the  encouragement  of  improvement  in  the 
management  of  creameries,  and  a  variety  of  other  work  and 
investigations  .  .  . 

FUNCTIONS  OF  LOCAL  AUTHORITIES 
The  local  authorities  are  the  County  Councils,  of  which 
there  are  thirty-three.     Each  Council,  however,  for  the 

[57] 


purposes  of  the  Department's  work,  appoints  a  Committee 
of  Agriculture  composed  partly  of  members  of  the  Council, 
and  partly  of  other  persons.  To  this  committee  the  Coun- 
cil usually  delegates  full  powers,  subject  to  the  approval  of 
the  Department,  for  the  administration  of  the  funds  placed 
at  its  disposal.  The  County  Council  alone  can  raise  a  rate 
for  the  purposes  of  the  Act.  In  some  cases  this  rate  is  Id. 
in  the  pound,  in  others 


The  amount  raised  by  the  county  rate  is  usually  trans- 
ferred by  the  County  Council  to  the  County  Committee  to 
be  applied  by  them,  subject  to  the  approval  of  the  Depart- 
ment, partly  to  schemes  of  agriculture  and  partly  to  schemes 
of  technical  instruction.  In  a  few  cases  the  amount  to  be 
spent  on  agriculture  and  on  technical  instruction  respective- 
ly is  specified  by  the  County  Council.  In  the  majority  of 
cases,  however,  it  is  left  to  the  County  Committee  to  decide 
the  proportions.  In  the  first  year  31  out  of  33  County 
Councils  did  so. 

RELATIONS  WITH  LOCAL  AUTHORITIES 

The  relations  between  the  Department  and  these  com- 
mittees are  very  satisfactory  indeed.  In  the  first  years, 
when  the  procedure  was  not  well  understood,  there  were  ad- 
ministrative difficulties  and  delays;  but  all  these  have  been 
largely,  if  not  altogether,  overcome,  and  an  excellent  under- 
standing has  for  some  years  existed  between  the  leading 
members  of  the  committees  and  the  officers  of  the  Depart- 
ment, who  are  constantly  in  conference,  either  at  the  local 
meetings  or  at  the  offices  of  the  Department,  to  discuss 
the  details  of  and  the  arrangements  for  carrying  out  the 
work.  Individuals  have  felt  aggrieved  owing  to  the  ac- 
tion of  the  committee  itself,  or  of  the  Department,  but 
this  is  inevitable  where  public  funds  are  distributed  among 
farmers  to  encourage  improvement  in  their  methods.  So 
far  as  is  in  their  power  the  Department  have  fairly  met  the 
wishes  of  the  committees.  Not  only  are  the  committees 
in  constant  communication  with  the  central  offices,  but  each 

[58] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION   IN   IRELAND 

committee  is  invited  by  the  Department  to  submit  its  views 
on  the  working  of  the  schemes  before  the  commencement  of 
each  agricultural  year.  Suggestions  made  by  County  Com- 
mittees have  not  only  been  considered,  but,  in  the  great 
majority  of  cases,  have  been  adopted.  If  a  County  Com- 
mittee considers  itself  aggrieved  by  some  action  of  the 
Department,  the  committee  can  have  their  grievance  venti- 
lated through  the  Council  of  Agriculture,  a  body  appointed 
especially  for  this  purpose,  and  to  whom  the  Department 
must  answer  if  it  ignores  public  opinion. 

The  amount  of  work  done  and  money  expended  by  the 
County  Committees  has  each  year  steadily  increased,  and 
the  quality  of  the  work  also  has  improved  and  is  improving. 
With  the  exceptions  already  noted,  every  County  Council 
has  annually  raised  a  rate  and  appointed  its  committees, 
who  have  carried  on  successfully  one  or  more  of  the  schemes. 
These  schemes  up  to  the  present  comprise  improvement  in 
the  breeds  of  cattle,  horses,  asses,  and  swine;  itinerant  in- 
struction in  agricultural  subjects;  prizes  for  cottages  and 
farms;  subsidies  to  live  stock  shows;  field  experiments  and 
demonstrations  with  manures  and  seeds;  systematic  instruc- 
tion in  winter  schools  of  agriculture;  instruction  in  poultry- 
keeping,  including  improvement  in  the  breeds  of  fowl,  and 
the  fattening  and  marketing  of  poultry;  instruction  in 
horticulture,  including  the  purchase  and  distribution  of  trees 
at  cost  price;  instruction  in  bee-keeping,  and  instruction  in 
home  butter-making. 


WORK  ADMINISTERED  JOINTLY  BY  LOCAL  AUTHORITIES  AND 
THE  DEPARTMENT 

A  Year's  Work 

The  agricultural  year  commences  in  autumn.  Early  in 
summer  —  in  June  usually  —  the  Department  circularizes 
all  the  County  Committees,  inviting  their  views  on  the  work 
of  the  previous  year.  The  views  of  the  Department's 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


inspectors  who  have  been  in  touch  with  the  leading  members 
and  with  the  officers  of  the  committees  are  also  obtained. 
These  suggestions  are  then  considered  by  the  Department, 
and  where  there  are  any  national  interests  to  safeguard  and 
where  expert  advice  is  helpful  advisory  committees  of  ex- 
perts are  called  in  to  assist  the  Department  in  their  delibera- 
tions. The  advisory  committees  are  those  dealing  with 
horses,  cattle,  and  swine,  flax,  tobacco,  and  forestry.  The 
views  of  the  County  Committees  are  laid  before  these  com- 
mittees, and  an  outline  program  is  then  prepared.  Unless 
in  very  special  cases  all  details  are  left  for  each  local  author- 
ity to  settle  as  it  sees  fit. 

Early  in  August  these  outline  schemes  are  explained  to, 
and  laid  before,  the  Agricultural  Board,  with  a  statement  of 
the  amount  of  money  which  it  is  estimated  will  be  required 
from  the  Department's  funds  (1)  to  meet  the  cost  of  central 
administration,  and  (2)  to  meet  the  Department's  contribu- 
tion to  the  funds  of  the  County  Committees.  When  the 
necessary  funds  have  been  voted  by  the  Agricultural  Board 
a  conference  at  the  Department's  offices  of  secretaries  of 
County  Committees  has  usually  been  held  to  discuss  any 
new  provision  in  the  schemes,  and  to  arrange  dates  for 
meetings  of  the  committees  which  are  attended  by  the 
Department's  inspectors  for  the  purpose  of  assisting  in 
arranging  details  of  the  program  and  finances  for  the  en- 
suing agricultural  year.  As  soon  as  each  County  Com- 
mittee has  decided  on  the  schemes  which  it  proposes  to  put 
into  operation,  and  has  provisionally  allocated  funds  there- 
for, the  secretary  notifies  the  Department,  who  then  inti- 
mate their  approval  as  well  as  the  maximum  of  their  con- 
tribution for  the  year.  Where  the  County  Committee  and 
its  secretary  are  alive  to  the  interests  of  the  county,  the  work 
is  usually  in  full  swing  by  October,  except,  of  course,  such 
sections  of  it  as  depend  on  the  seasons.  The  appointment 
of  local  or  district  subcommittees,  who  see  that  the  district 
they  represent  takes  full  advantage  of  the  schemes,  is  a 
most  important  factor  in  insuring  the  success  of  the  work. 
The  Department  have  urged  the  appointment  of  such  sub- 

[60] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION  IN   IRELAND 

committees  to  assist  the  statutory  committees,  and  hope  that 
still  more  use  will  be  made  of  them  in  future  years. 

County  Committees  of  Agriculture  meet,  as  a  rule,  once 
a  month.  As  already  stated,  a  representative  of  the  Depart- 
ment always  attends  the  first  meeting,  and  subsequent  ones 
as  often  as  possible. 


AGRICULTURAL  EDUCATION 

Of  all  the  agricultural  problems  which  the  Department 
have  had  to  solve,  that  of  gradually  leading  Irish  farmers  to 
appreciate  an  education  for  their  sons,  who  are  to  succeed 
them,  has  been  the  most  difficult,  and  has  received  the  most 
attention.  It  did  not  require  a  prolonged  study  of  the  con- 
ditions of  agriculture  in  Ireland  to  show  that  there  is  good 
reason  why  it  would  be  impracticable  to  at  once  introduce 
methods  which  have  proved  successful  in  other  countries. 
It  is  unnecessary  to  describe  the  provision  made  in  Ireland 
for  agricultural  education  before  the  creation  of  the  Depart- 
ment of  Agriculture.  Suffice  it  to  say  that  up  to  that  time 
such  education  was  provided  by  the  Commissioners  of 
National  Education.  At  one  time  agricultural  education 
was  given  at  a  large  number  of  public  institutions,  and  in 
national  schools.  At  the  time  of  the  formation  of  the 
Department,  for  one  reason  or  another,  all  these  institutions 
had  been  abandoned,  with  the  exception  of  the  Albert  Train- 
ing Institute,  Glasnevin,  and  the  Munster  Institute,  Cork. 
Instruction  had  also  been  given  in  thirty-eight  national 
schools  by  national  teachers  who  had  been  trained  at  the 
Albert  Institution,  and  who  usually  worked  a  farm  in  con- 
nection with  the  school.  The  Albert  Institution  and  the 
Munster  Institute  were  handed  over  to  the  Department, 
who  were,  however,  precluded  from  giving  agricultural 
instruction  in  national  schools.  The  Commissioners  had 
ceased  to  teach  agriculture  in  these  schools,  and  all,  there- 
fore, that  remained  of  their  agricultural  operations  were  the 
two  institutions  referred  to  above.  At  each  of  these  there 

[61] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


were  two  courses  in  the  year,  one  for  female  and  one  for 
male  students ;  hence  the  equipment  was  designed  for  teach- 
ing alternate  courses  of  practical  agriculture  to  young  men 
and  dairy  work  and  domestic  economy  to  girls.  The 
scientific  instruction  at  Glasnevin  took  the  form  of  a  num- 
ber of  lectures  on  chemistry,  botany,  zoology,  and  veter- 
inary science  by  specialists  from  the  city,  who  were  not, 
however,  agriculturists.  There  were  no  laboratories,  and 
therefore  no  practical  instruction  in  the  sciences  underlying 
agriculture.  The  course  extended  over  a  period  of  about 
six  months.  Attention  is  directed  to  these  facts,  as  it  will 
enable  one  to  understand  the  difficulty  caused  by  the  want 
of  trained  Irishmen  to  enable  the  Department  to  immedi- 
ately establish  and  staff  agricultural  institutions. 

Another  factor  which  has  to  be  taken  into  consideration 
in  devising  a  system  of  agricultural  education  is  the  fact  that 
in  Ireland  there  is  an  extraordinary  desire  on  the  part  of 
young  men  of  the  country  to  escape  from  farm  life.  Their 
education  is  all  directed  toward  fitting  them  for  occupa- 
tions of  a  wholly  different  character,  and  the  brightest  of  the 
family  receives  an  education  often  at  the  expense  of  the  son 
who  is  to  succeed  the  father.  The  occupier  of  the  land 
himself  is  not  always  a  man  of  education,  nor  can  he  be 
expected  to  appreciate  the  advantages  of  education  except 
as  a  means  of  escaping  from  the  land.  To  induce  him,  there- 
fore, to  make  some  sacrifice  to  give  the  son  who  is  to  succeed 
him  in  the  holding  a  technical  education  suitable  to  his  call- 
ing, it  is  necessary  first  of  all  to  convince  him  of  its  advan- 
tages. It  is  impracticable  to  bring  the  farmer  himself  to 
school,  and  therefore  the  only  way  he  can  be  brought  into 
contact  with  the  application  of  science  to  agriculture  is  by 
sending  round  instructors  to  give  lectures  in  the  evenings; 
to  visit  holdings  during  the  day  and  discuss  privately  with 
the  occupiers  the  various  problems  which  confront  them  in 
their  practice.  Such  an  officer,  if  he  is  armed  with  a  thor- 
ough knowledge  of  his  business,  both  scientific  and  practical, 
rarely  fails  to  convince  a  farmer  of  the  fact  that  he  would 
have  been  more  successful  had  he  received  an  agricultural 

[62] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION   IN   IRELAND 

education,  and  that  it  is  to  his  son's  advantage  that  he  should 
be  given  one.  It  is  scarcely  necessary  to  state  that  such 
work,  however,  is  slow,  and  even  in  the  most  progressive 
countries  requires  patience  and  determined  perseverance. 
It  is  a  universal  experience  that  the  more  highly  educated, 
capable,  and  progressive  the  farmer,  the  more  he  appreciates 
technical  education. 

With  the  agriculture  of  Ireland  in  a  backward  condition, 
where  the  smartest  sons  forsake  the  land,  where  the  holdings 
are  often  too  small  to  be  economically  managed,  where  the 
farmer's  financial  resources  are  very  limited,  where  a  system 
of  agricultural  credit,  often  of  the  worst  possible  description, 
exists,  and  where  the  people  have  been  taught  that  improve- 
ment of  their  land  may  mean  an  increase  in  rent,  the  reader 
will  realize  that  the  Department  had  very  real  difficulties 
to  face. 

In  this  connection  one  further  aspect  of  the  case  may  be 
given.  There  are  in  Ireland  nearly  half  a  million  holdings, 
of  which  a  quarter  of  a  million  may  be  taken  as  under  twenty 
statute  acres  in  extent.  The  owners  of  such  holdings  are, 
of  course,  quite  unable  to  pay  anything  like  the  cost  of  a 
special  education;  all  that  can  be  expected  of  them  is  that 
they  should  contribute  a  small  fraction  of  it.  With  these 
considerations  before  them,  the  policy  of  the  Department 
has  been — 

(1)  To  provide  at  one  central  institution  the  highest 
form  of  technical  education  for  the  training  of  men  who  are 
to  become  teachers  and  specialists  in  agriculture.     This 
has  been  done  at  the  Royal  College  of  Science  in  connection 
with  the  farm  and  college  at  Glasnevin. 

(2)  To  provide  at  least  one  high-class  agricultural  col- 
lege which  would  form  a  stepping-stone  to  men  desirous  of 
entering  the  Royal  College  of  Science,  as  well  as  men,  the 
sons  of  well-to-do  farmers,  who  wish  for  an  education  to 
enable  them  to  manage  their  own  farms,  and  men  who  desire 
to  become  creamery  managers,  or  who  wish  to  have  a  special 
training  to  fit  them  as  horticultural  or  poultry  experts, 
stewards,  land  agents,  or  other  occupations  in  connection 

[63] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


with  agriculture.     This  has  been  done  at  the  Albert  Agri- 
cultural College,  Glasnevin. 

(3)  To  provide  provincial  institutions  at  which  young 
men  who  can  be  spared  from  the  farm  for  one  year  can  be 
taken  in  as  apprentices,  taught  agriculture,  both  practical 
and  technical,  at  a  fee  proportionate  to  their  means.     This 
work,  which  had  to  be  delayed  until  teachers  were  trained, 
is  now  in  progress  at  three  institutions,  and  the  provision  of 
others  is  in  contemplation. 

(4)  To  provide  winter  schools  of  agriculture  where  the 
sons  of  farmers  could  obtain  technical  training  at  small 
expense  during  the  winter  months,  when  they  can  best  be 
spared  from  farm  work.     Twenty-eight  such  schools  were 
started  in  the  winter  of  1906  in  twelve  counties  where  prog- 
ress had  previously  been  made  with  itinerant  instruction. 

(5)  To  provide  one  central  higher  institution  for  the 
training  of  women  in  the  domestic  economy  of  the  farm- 
house, and  in  work  which  falls  to  the  lot  of  women  to  perform 
in  connection  with  the  farmyard;  as,  for  example,  dairying 
and  poultry-keeping.     This  provision  has  been  made  at  the 
Munster  Institute,  Cork. 

(6)  To  provide  for  young  women  education  in  domestic 
economy  and  farmyard  lore  at  residential  and  day  schools. 
This  has  been  done  at  a  number  of  institutions,  while  the 
equipment  of  others  is  under  consideration. 

(7)  To  provide  in  each  county,  by  a  system  of  itinerant 
instruction  in  agriculture,  horticulture,  dairying,  poultry- 
keeping,  and  bee-keeping,  instruction  and  advice  for  farmers 
and  their  wives,  sons,  and  daughters  who  cannot  avail  them- 
selves of  other  means  of  acquiring  information. 

Thus  the  Department  have  laid  the  basis  of  a  graduated 
system  of  agricultural  education  by  means  of  which  the 
youth  who  is  inspired  by  the  work  of  the  itinerant  instructor 
may  be  able  to  obtain  education  in  the  local  winter  school  of 
agriculture,  from  which  he  may  graduate  to  the  provincial 
agricultural  school,  thence  to  the  Albert  Agricultural  Col- 
lege, or  the  Royal  College  of  Science,  according  to  his  cir- 
cumstances and  his  education,  and  equip  himself  for  the 

[64] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION  IN  IRELAND 

highest  offices  in  connection   with  agriculture  which  the 
country  has  to  bestow. 

One  important  aspect  of  the  question  should  be  men- 
tioned in  this  connection;  viz.,  that  the  education  of  the 
agricultural  student  must  be  accelerated  when  the  influence 
of  the  teaching  of  practical  science  in  the  secondary  schools 
provided  under  the  Technical  Instruction  Scheme  comes  to 
be  more  and  more  felt.  It  may  be  taken  for  granted  that 
the  boy  who  has  had  a  training  in  practical  science  in  the 
secondary  school  will  benefit  more  by  his  attendance  at  the 
lectures  and  demonstrations  of  the  agricultural  instructor, 
at  the  classes  in  the  winter  schools,  and  at  the  provincial 
institutions,  than  the  boy  who  goes  to  these  without  this 
preliminary  training. 

ROYAL  COLLEGE  OF  SCIENCE 

As  already  indicated,  the  first  duty  of  the  Assistant 
Secretary  on  joining  the  Department,  in  August,  1900,  was 
to  study  the  state  of  agriculture  in  Ireland.  His  first  official 
recommendation  was  that  a  Faculty  of  Agriculture  should 
be  established  in  the  Royal  College  of  Science  in  Dublin, 
and  that  scholarships  should  be  provided  to  encourage  young 
Irishmen  to  study  there,  and  so  fit  them  for  work  in  con- 
nection with  the  Department's  schemes.  His  recommen- 
dations to  the  Department  under  this  head  coincided  with 
the  views  of  the  vice-president  and  the  secretary.  No  time 
was  lost  in  establishing  the  faculty.  In  October  of  the 
same  year  nine  young  men,  all  well  acquainted  with  the 
practice  of  agriculture,  were  enrolled.  Every  year  since 
then  a  fresh  number  of  scholarships  has  been  offered  to  the 
same  class  of  students.  Eighty-three  men  (1912)  have 
been  so  trained,  sixty-four  of  whom  (1912)  are  now  employed 
on  the  Department's  program.  It  is  hoped  that  all  these 
men,  with  others  to  be  trained  in  subsequent  years,  will  do 
useful  service  to  the  country  in  the  cause  of  agricultural 
education.  These  scholarships  are  awarded  on  the  result 
of  an  examination  which  comprises  English  and  another 
language,  mathematics,  and  practical  agriculture.  The 

[65] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


scholarship  entitles  the  holder  to  free  education  and  a 
maintenance  allowance  of  £l  Is.  per  week  while  in  attendance 
at  the  college.  The  application  for  these  scholarships  was 
not  at  first  all  that  could  be  desired.  It  has  taken  a  few 
years  for  the  youth  of  the  country  to  realize  their  opportu- 
nities, and  the  opening  which  the  Department  has  created 
for  teachers  of  agriculture.  At  first  applications  were 
received  from  clerks,  unsuccessful  candidates  for  the  civil 
service,  students  who  failed  to  pass  various  professional 
examinations,  e.g.,  church,  law,  medicine,  and  such  like. 
As  however,  the  program  of  the  Department  is  becoming 
better  understood,  and  the  influence  of  the  winter  and 
provincial  schools  of  agriculture  is  being  felt,  a  much  better 
class  of  candidate  is  coming  forward  year  by  year. 

The  course  at  the  Royal  College  extends  over  three  years 
(extended  to  four  in  1912) — the  session  lasting  from  October 
to  June.  In  the  first  year  the  subjects  studied  are  chemis- 
try, physics,  mathematics,  drawing;  second  year,  botany, 
zoology,  geology,  with  their  application  to  agriculture;  sur- 
veying and  veterinary  hygiene;  third  year,  agriculture, 
agricultural  chemistry,  agricultural  bacteriology,  and  en- 
gineering. 

The  total  number  of  regular  students  in  1911-12  was 
141,  besides  325  who  attended  special  summer  courses  in 
1912. 


ALBERT  AGRICULTURAL  COLLEGE,  GLASNEVIN 

At  the  time  this  institution  was  taken  over,  two  courses 
of  instruction  were  given  annually,  one  for  women  in  dairy- 
ing and  domestic  economy,  and  one  in  agriculture  for  men. 
The  drawbacks  to  such  an  arrangement  are  obvious:  the 
staff  and  equipment  had  to  be  duplicated,  and  a  six  months' 
course  in  agriculture  is  obviously  too  short  for  a  high-class 
college.  The  Department,  recognizing  the  need  for  at  least 
one  institution  at  which  young  men  could  receive  a  less 
expensive  and  less  exhaustive  course  than  that  given  at  the 
Royal  College  of  Science,  decided  to  equip  the  Glasnevin 

[66] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION   IN   IRELAND 

Institution  partly  as  a  preparatory  school  for  the  Royal 
College,  and  partly  to  meet  the  demands  of  those  who  are 
prepared  to  pay  a  fair  proportion  of  the  cost  of  their  educa- 
tion, and  who  desire  to  fit  themselves  for  an  agricultural 
career. 

The  buildings,  which  had  been  erected  about  the  year 
1854,  were  almost  worn  out,  and  were  not  equipped  in 
accordance  with  modern  ideas.  A  scheme  for  their  recon- 
struction and  reorganization  on  the  lines  indicated  was  sub- 
mitted to  the  Agricultural  Board,  who  voted  funds  for  the 
necessary  alterations. 

The  farm  consists  of  170  acres,  112  acres  of  which  are 
cultivated  on  an  eight-course  rotation  with  crops  suitable 
to  Ireland ;  the  remainder  is  in  pasture,  on  which  are  kept  a 
herd  of  dairy  cows  and  a  flock  of  sheep.  The  farm  is  famous 
for  its  breed  of  large  Yorkshire  pigs,  and  there  has  recently 
been  added  a  small  herd  of  valuable  pure-bred  shorthorn 
cattle.  The  produce  of  both  classes  of  stock  is  sold  or 
given  out  on  loan  to  breeders  of  pedigree  stock. 

The  course  now  extends  throughout  the  year,  during 
which  the  students  are  taught  English,  mathematics,  sur- 
veying, agricultural  chemistry,  agricultural  botany,  agri- 
culture, both  in  the  field  and  in  the  classroom,  horticulture, 
butter-making,  poultry-keeping,  bee-keeping,  and  manual 
instruction  in  woodwork.  The  students  devote  half  their 
time  to  indoor  and  half  to  outdoor  studies.  Instruction  by 
a  resident  staff  in  well-equipped  laboratories  now  takes  the 
place  of  the  former  system  of  lectures  by  visiting  masters. 

Twenty-five  free  scholarships,  entitling  the  holders  to 
maintenance  and  education,  are  offered  per  annum.  Farm- 
ers' sons  pay  £25  and  others  £60  per  annum. 

The  farm  and  institution,  however,  serve  purposes  other 
than  those  already  mentioned.  The  gardens  are  employed 
for  the  training  of  young  men,  the  best  of  whom  eventually 
become  itinerant  instructors  in  horticulture  under  the  local 
authorities.  These  are  admitted  as  apprentices,  and  are 
selected  on  the  result  of  an  examination,  due  regard  being 

[67] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


had  to  their  previous  knowledge  of  practical  gardening;  they 
do  the  work  of  the  garden  and  orchards,  and  receive  free 
instruction  in  the  college.  They  are  paid  at  the  rate  of 
from  18s.  to  25s.  per  week,  and  reside  outside.  .  .  . 
The  poultry  department  serves  as  a  center  for  the  breeding 
and  distribution  of  pure-bred  fowl  in  connection  with  the 
county  schemes,  and  is  being  utilized  for  the  grading  up  of 
egg-laying  strains  by  the  keeping  of  a  register  of  eggs  of 
individual  birds.  The  farm  also  serves  as  a  station  where 
high-class  sires  are  housed  pending  their  distribution  to  the 
backward  counties  which  require  special  assistance  from  the 
Department. 

AGRICULTURAL  STATIONS 

The  Albert  Agricultural  College  is  not,  however,  the 
type  of  institution  which  the  Department  would  wish  to  see 
multiplied  in  Ireland.  It  is  clear  that  one  such  place  is 
necessary,  but  one  should  be  sufficient  for  the  requirements 
of  the  country.  There  is,  however,  room  in  Ireland  for  a 
type  of  agricultural  institution  where  instruction  less 
technical  and  more  practical  can  be  given.  This  need  the 
Department  have  recognized,  and  provision  has  already  been 
made  for  three  such  institutions — one  at  Athenry,  County 
Gal  way;  one  at  Ballyhaise,  County  Cavan;  and  one  at  Clona- 
kilty,  County  Cork.  As  soon  as  these  are  properly  equipped 
and  staffed  and  the  available  accommodation  is  taken  up, 
and  qualified  teachers  become  available,  the  intention  is  to 
start  similar  establishments  elsewhere  so  far  as  funds  will 
permit. 

Admission  to  these  institutions  is  confined  to  young  men 
who  are  able  to  show  the  Department  that  they  are  to  be- 
come farmers  in  Ireland,  and  that  they  have  an  immediate 
or  early  prospect  of  obtaining  a  holding. 

For  apprentices  whose  parents  or  guardians  derive  their 
means  of  living  mainly  from  farming  the  fees  are  propor- 
tional to  the  aggregate  tenement  valuation  of  their  holdings. 

The  apprentices  are  boarded   and  lodged,   as  well   as 

[68] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION  IN  IRELAND 

educated.  They  are,  however,  required  to  do  part  of  the 
work  of  the  farm.  The  course  at  present  lasts  for  one  year. 
In  addition  to  being  taught  practical  field  operations,  such 
as  have  to  be  performed  on  a  well-managed  holding,  the 
apprentices  receive  classroom  instruction  in  English,  farm 
arithmetic,  surveying,  book-keeping,  and  agriculture.  They 
also  study  the  methods  of  improving  land,  tillage,  cultiva- 
tion of  crops,  use  and  purchase  of  manures,  seeds,  and  feeding 
stuffs,  the  management  of  pastures,  dairying,  butter-mak- 
ing, gardening,  hedging,  wood  and  iron  work,  etc. 

At  Clonakilty  there  is  a  mixed  tillage  farm  of  350  acres. 
The  Department  have  erected  residential  quarters  for  staff 
and  apprentices,  and  stocked  the  farm.  .  .  .  The  in- 
stitution was  opened  in  October,  1905,  and  eighteen  students 
were  enrolled;  the  number  enrolled  for  the  present  session 
(1906-07)  is  twenty-three  (1911-12:  thirty). 

At  Athenry  there  are  about  700  acres.  When  taken 
over  by  the  Department  almost  all  the  land  at  this  station 
was  in  grass,  but  it  is  now  being  gradually  converted  into 
tillage.  (Twelve  students  were  in  residence  in  1911-12.) 

At  Bally haise  there  are  also  about  700  acres  of  land,  part 
of  which  is  capable  of  being  worked  as  a  mixed  farm.  The 
mansion  house  on  the  estate  has  been  altered  to  provide 
accommodation  for  about  forty  apprentices.  It  was  opened 
early  last  year  with  twenty  apprentices.  Twenty-seven 
apprentices  have  been  admitted  to  the  1906-07  session 
(1911-12:  thirty-five). 

WINTER   SCHOOLS   OF   AGRICULTURE   AND   AGRICULTURAL 

CLASSES 

The  main  reason  offered  by  a  farmer  for  not  giving  a 
good  education  to  the  son  who  is  to  succeed  him  is  that 
owing  to  scarcity  of  labor  he  cannot  afford  to  lose  his  services 
on  the  farm.  There  is  a  good  deal  of  truth  in  this  argument, 
but  it  applies  more  to  the  summer  season  than  to  the  winter, 
and,  accordingly,  it  was  decided  to  start  local  winter  schools 
or  classes,  in  order  that  opportunities  of  acquiring  education 
might  be  put  within  the  reach  of  those  who  could  not  be 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


spared  from  the  farm  during  the  summer.  These  classes 
are  being  organized  mainly  in  counties  which  have  already 
had  the  service  of  an  itinerant  instructor  in  agriculture  for 
two  or  more  years.  At  first  the  Department  organized 
these  winter  schools  themselves;  now  it  is  sought  as  far  as 
possible  to  place  them  under  the  administration  of  local 
authorities.  As,  however,  the  work  is  new,  and  as  the  local 
bodies  have  not  had  much  experience  of  this  form  of  educa- 
tion, the  Department's  officers  have  associated  themselves 
very  closely  with  the  local  authorities,  and  have,  in  the 
majority  of  cases,  undertaken  the  actual  work  of  organiza- 
tion and  supervision.  These  winter  schools  differ  some- 
what according  to  locality,  but  the  following  is  a  description 
of  the  most  common  type.  A  classroom  at  some  rural 
center,  convenient  to  a  village  or  railway  junction,  is  se- 
cured; provision  is  made  to  have  it  warmed  and  lighted; 
and  it  is  equipped  with  plain  deal  benches  or  tables  and 
agricultural  specimens,  such  as  seeds  and  manures,  feeding 
stuffs,  grasses,  and  such  like.  Where  the  county  itinerant 
instructor  in  agriculture  is  not  available  to  teach  the  classes, 
the  Department  provide  a  special  teacher  for  the  course. 
The  County  Committee  advertise  the  school,  and  offer  to 
pay  the  traveling  expenses  of  young  men  who  will  attend  the 
school  regularly.  In  some  cases  the  student  is  supplied  with 
a  midday  meal  gratis.  When  a  special  teacher  is  employed, 
three  two-day  classes  or  two  three-day  classes  are  held  each 
week  during  the  course,  which  usually  extends  over  twenty 
weeks,  opening  in  October  and  closing  in  March.  The 
number  of  pupils  in  each  class  is  limited  to  twenty-four. 
The  classes  are  held  for  five  hours  per  day.  The  subjects 
taught  are  agriculture — soils,  tillage,  cropping,  manures 
(natural  and  artificial),  seeds,  grasses,  weeds,  treatment  of 
pastures,  management  of  live  stock,  including  winter  dairy- 
ing, valuation  of  manures  and  feeding  stuffs;  simple  farm 
account  keeping,  mensuration,  elementary  chain  surveying; 
and  elementary  science  explanatory  of  the  principles  under- 
lying ordinary  farm  practice.  This  instruction  is  given  by 
the  resident  teacher,  while  lectures  and  demonstrations  are 

[70] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION   IN   IRELAND 

given  on  horticulture  and  poultry-keeping  by  county  in- 
structors, and  on  veterinary  science  by  visiting  teachers. 

At  one  center  where  the  class  is  held  for  five  hours  on  five 
days  per  week  during  twenty  weeks,  a  more  extended  course 
is  given  and  laboratory  equipment,  which  is  considered 
unnecessary  for  the  shorter  courses  already  referred  to,  is 
provided.  In  this  case  a  maintenance  allowance  of  15s.  per 
week  is  made  to  pupils  who,  being  unable  to  travel  daily  to 
and  from  their  homes,  find  it  necessary  to  reside  at  the  class 
center. 


COUNTY  SCHEMES  OF  AGRICULTURE 

The  work  so  far  described  has  been  in  the  main  directed 
to  the  training  of  teachers  and  experts,  and  to  the  initiation 
of  what  is  hoped  will  develop  into  a  system  of  agricultural 
education  which  will  meet  the  needs  of  Ireland  if  it  is  not 
unduly  forced  but  allowed  to  grow  naturally  out  of  the 
existing  conditions  of  agriculture,  and  out  of  the  practical 
education  which  is  being  provided  by  local  authorities.  The 
education  which  is  provided  by  local  authorities  is  intended 
immediately  and  directly  to  help  the  occupiers  of  the  land 
as  well  as  cottagers,  and  to  arouse  in  them  a  desire  for  a 
better  education  for  their  sons  and  daughters,  without  which 
it  would  be  impossible  for  any  system  of  agricultural  educa- 
tion to  prove  successful.  The  operations  of  the  local  au- 
thorities are  usually  designated  "county  schemes."  These 
provide  for  instruction  by  itinerant  instructors — a  form  of 
education  which  has  played  an  important  part  in  the  devel- 
opment of  agriculture  in  many  countries.  The  work  is  now 
under  the  immediate  direction  of  the  County  Committees  of 
Agriculture.  The  schemes  are  revised  annually  at  the 
beginning  of  the  agricultural  year  so  as  to  give  each  local 
authority  an  opportunity  of  making  suggestions  for  an  im- 
provement in  the  method  of  procedure,  suggested  by  the 
experience  gained  during  the  year,  or  for  the  total  rejection 
of  the  scheme  if  they  are  dissatisfied  with  it.  At  first,  when 
the  number  of  instructors  available  was  very  limited,  and 

[71] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


when  the  committee  and  the  public  had  no  experience  of 
such  work,  the  Department  themselves  provided  directly 
for  work  of  this  kind  by  sending  round  pioneer  instructors. 
Each  year,  however,  has  seen  a  greater  demand  for  instruc- 
tion of  this  character,  and  as  the  demand  increased  and 
instructors  became  available,  the  direction  of  the  work  was 
gradually  delegated  to  the  committee  themselves.  They 
appoint  the  instructors,  arrange  their  work,  check  and  pay 
their  locomotion  expenses  and  the  salaries  of  all,  except  in 
the  case  of  the  agricultural  instructors,  whose  salaries  are 
paid  directly  by  the  Department.  The  cost  of  these 
schemes  is  paid  out  of  the  joint  fund ;  that  is,  the  amount  of 
the  Id.  or  }^d.  rate  provided  by  the  County  Council,  and  the 
Department's  contribution,  which  is  provided  annually  by 
the  Agricultural  Board  after  the  schemes  for  the  year  have 
been  placed  before  them  and  approved. 

DUTIES  OF  THE  ITINERANT  INSTRUCTOR 

Briefly  this  scheme  provides  for  the  appointment  of  local 
committees  of  at  least  one  itinerant  instructor  in  each 
county. 

His  duties  are  as  follows : 

To  deliver  courses  of  lectures  on  agricultural  subjects, 
such  as  soils,  manures,  seeds,  pastures,  crops  and  their  culti- 
vation, breeding,  feeding,  and  management  of  live  stock; 
to  visit  farms;  to  conduct  such  experiments  and  demonstra- 
tions in  spring  and  summer  as  may  be  approved  by  the 
Department;  to  select  suitable  land  for  this  purpose;  to 
supervise  the  sowing  of  the  seeds  and  manures  and  the  keep- 
ing of  the  plots  free  from  weeds;  to  weigh  the  produce, 
tabulate  the  figures,  and  prepare  a  report  on  the  results; 
to  assist,  if  required,  in  the  teaching  at  agricultural  classes 
established  with  the  approval  of  the  Department;  to  reply 
to  letters  from  farmers  seeking  information;  to  advise  farm- 
ers how  they  may  avail  themselves  of  the  Department's  live 
stock  schemes  and  of  the  Department's  seed-testing  station; 
to  make  known  the  provisions  of  the  Fertilizers  and  Feeding 

[72] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION  IN   IRELAND 

Stuffs  Act;  to  advise  farmers  how  they  can  best  avail  them- 
selves of  all  the  schemes  which  may  be  adopted  by  the 
County  Committee  and  by  the  Department,  and  how  they 
may  take  advantage  of  agricultural  organization;  to  report 
to  the  Department  and  to  the  County  Committee  regarding 
the  progress  of  his  work,  either  weekly  or  otherwise,  as  may 
be  required;  and  generally  to  give  his  whole  time  to  the  work 
and  do  all  in  his  power  to  further  the  interests  of  agriculture 
in  the  county. 

The  instructor  may  also  be  required  to  act  as  judge  in 
connection  with  the  scheme  of  prizes  for  cottages  and  small 
farms  in  a  county  other  than  that  in  which  he  acts  as  in- 
structor. 

The  Department  makes  it  a  condition  that  this  officer 
must  have  had  a  first-class  training  in  technical  and  practical 
agriculture,  not  that  he  is  required  or  allowed  to  give 
highly  technical  or  scientific  lectures  or  advice,  but  in  order 
that  there  may  be  some  guarantee  that  the  practical  advice 
which  he  tenders  is  based  upon  a  sound  scientific  study  of 
the  problems  which  he  has  to  solve  and  to  prevent  what  has 
done  so  much  harm  to  agricultural  education  elsewhere — 
the  giving  of  empiric  advice. 

In  1906  twenty-three  instructors  were  at  work  under  the 
direction  of  the  County  Committees.  These  officers  at- 
tended 1,169  meetings  of  farmers,  at  which  they  delivered 
lectures,  and  assisted  in  the  subsequent  discussions.  The 
average  attendance  at  these  meetings  was  fifty-six.  .  .  . 
In  1906  these  instructors  arranged  and  carried  out  2,082 
field  demonstrations  and  439  field  experiments.  It  may  be 
pointed  out  that  a  demonstration  consists  of  one  plot  to 
illustrate  a  particular  kind  of  treatment  of  the  soil  or  method 
of  growing  a  crop;  the  results  are  determined  on  inspection 
by  the  farmers  themselves.  Each  field  experiment,  on  the 
other  hand,  consists  of  several  plots  treated  differently,  and 
from  which  the  crops  are  very  carefully  weighed  and  meas- 
ured, and  the  results  published  and  circulated.  .  .  . 

That  the  work  of  these  instructors  is  not  only  popular, 
but  effective,  is  proved  by  the  fact  that  County  Committees 

[73] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


which  have  undertaken  it  desire  to  continue  the  work,  and 
have  absolutely  refused  to  part  with  their  instructor,  even 
for  one  year,  to  help  other  counties  that  have  failed  to  secure 
one.  It  is  shown  also  by  the  constant  demand  for  advice 
of  the  instructor,  not  merely  personally  at  the  lectures  and 
in  the  market  place,  but  by  private  correspondence.  The 
letter  books  of  the  instructors  last  year  (1906)  show  that 
they  had  to  give  advice  by  letter  in  about  25,000  cases. 

RESULTS  REACHED  BY  1912 

Secretary  Campbell  has  shown  that  where  possible  the 
scheme  of  instruction  is  carried  out  through  the  County 
Committees  of  Agriculture.  In  other  places  the  schemes 
are  administered  directly  by  the  Department  of  Agriculture 
and  Technical  Instruction.  In  the  report  for  1911-12  the 
County  Committees  employed  instructors  as  follows: 

In  Agriculture 43 

In  Horticulture  and  Bee-keeping 40 

In  Poultry-keeping 36 

In  Butter-making 33 

Total '. 152 

In  seventeen  counties  the  instructors  in  poultry -keeping 
acted  also  as  instructors  in  butter-making.  The  total  number 
of  persons  employed  in  the  year  1911-12  was  135.  The  fol- 
lowing table  indicates  the  extent  to  which  the  services  of 
instructors  were  utilized  in  connection  with  the  other  du- 
ties assigned  them: 


Agriculture 

Horticulture 
and 
Bee-keeping 

Poultry- 
keeping 

Butter- 
making 

No.  of  lectures  delivered.  .  . 
Estimated    attendance   at 
lectures  

642 
24  000 

206 
10  000 

253 
18  200 

191 
3  063 

No.  of  classes  conducted  .  .  . 
No.   of  students  admitted 
to  classes  

76 
1,405 

Nil. 
Nil 

124 
1  327 

224 
1  792 

No.  of  visits  to  farms,  gar- 
dens, dairies,  etc  

16,808 

33501 

15  905 

7  419 

No.  of  demonstration  plots 
laid  down  

2,113 

354 

74] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION   IN   IREIAND 

In  1911—12,  one  teacher  was  especially  employed  for 
these  classes,  in  addition  to  the  county  instructors. 

Under  schemes  administered  directly  by  the  Depart- 
ment there  were  employed  in  the  same  year  a  staff  of  49 
assistant  agricultural  overseers  and  four  overseers,  who 
were  employed  in  giving  individual  instruction  to  small 
holders.  The  assistant  overseers  also  gave  instruction 
through  the  medium  of  field  demonstration  plots.  In  this 
year  the  number  of  these  demonstrations  carried  out  by 
them  was  12,140.  During  the  same  year  2,182  visits  were 
made  to  creameries  by  a  staff  of  instructors  especially 
employed  for  this  work. 

In  1911-12  there  were  in  operation  nineteen  agricultural 
schools  and  colleges  with  extended  courses  approved  by 
the  Department.  Of  these  nine  (seven  for  male  students 
and  two  for  female  students)  were  conducted  directly  by 
the  Department;  the  other  ten  (one  for  male  students  and 
nine  for  female  students)  were  under  private  management. 
The  total  number  of  resident  students  at  these  institutions 
during  the  year  was  436. 

At  three  of  the  institutions  managed  by  the  Depart- 
ment courses  of  training  are  provided  for  the  students  who 
wish  to  qualify  for  itinerant  instructorships  in  agriculture, 
horticulture,  butter-making,  or  poultry-keeping,  or  for  teach- 
ing in  agricultural  schools.  These  schools  are  the  Royal 
College  of  Science  at  Dublin,  the  Albert  Agricultural  Col- 
lege at  Glasnevin,  and  the  Munster  Institute  at  Cork. 

During  the  year  1911-12  agricultural  winter  classes 
were  put  into  operation  in  28  counties  at  76  centers.  The 
total  number  of  students  admitted  to  these  classes  was 
1,405.  Thirty-five  of  the  county  itinerant  instructors  in 
agriculture  were  engaged  in  conducting  these  classes,  and 
one  teacher  was  specially  engaged  for  the  work.  It  was 
possible  in  addition  to  the  ordinary  agricultural  teaching  to 
provide  instruction  in  veterinary  hygiene  in  22  classes. 
Outdoor  demonstrations,  usually  four  at  each  class,  and  of 
from  one  to  four  hours'  duration  each,  were  given  by  the 
county  itinerant  instructors  in  the  classes  in  27  counties. 

[75] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


Evening  lectures  for  farmers  were  also  given  by  in- 
structors on  days  when  they  were  not  engaged  in  teaching 
classes.  Six  hundred  and  forty-two  such  lectures  were 
delivered  at  297  centers,  the  estimated  total  attendance 
amounting  to  almost  24,000  persons,  giving  an  average 
of  38  per  lecture.  The  figures  of  attendance  at  itinerant 
lectures  have  fallen  off  each  year  since  1907-08,  owing  to 
the  more  general  adoption  of  the  winter  agricultural  class 
scheme  and  the  consequent  substitution  of  class  teaching 
for  lecturing. 

COURSE  AT  WINTER  AGRICULTURAL  SCHOOLS 

The  course  of  instruction  at  these  winter  agricultural 
schools  for  the  year  1911-12  is  as  follows: 

Soils. —  Brief  sketch  of  origin  and  formation.  Condi- 
tions influencing  fertility.  Soil  improvement  by  draining, 
liming,  etc. 

Plant  Life. —  Study  of  a  plant,  and  the  functions  of  roots, 
stem,  and  leaves;  modification  of  these  organs.  Elements 
of  plant  food  and  their  relative  importance  from  an 
agricultural  point  of  view.  Conditions  affecting  the  devel- 
opment of  plants.  Examination  of  the  habits  of  growth 
and  duration  of  the  principal  crops  and  weeds  found  on  the 
farm,  and  the  practical  application  of  this  knowledge. 

Manures. —  Farmyard  manures;  its  storage  and  applica- 
tion. Organic  and  artificial  manures.  Composition,  de- 
scription, and  identification  of  artificial  manures;  their  valu- 
ation, time  and  manner  of  application.  Mixing  manures. 
Special  manures.  Fertilizers  and  Feeding  Stuffs  Act. 

Crops  and  Cropping. —  Rotations.  Cultivation.  Seed- 
ing, manuring,  and  harvesting  of  the  principal  farm  crops. 
Forage  and  catch  crops.  Study  of  the  commoner  insect 
pests  and  fungoid  diseases  of  crops. 

Grasses  and  Clovers. —  Characteristics,  duration,  and 
adaptability  for  various  purposes  in  farm  practice.  Identi- 
fication of  the  different  species  and  varieties. 

Seed's. —  Identification  of  farm  seeds  and  the  commoner 
impurities  and  adulterants.  Germination  and  purity  tests, 

[76] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION  IN   IRELAND 

how  performed;  the  inferences  to  be  drawn  therefrom. 
Change  of  seed.  Grass  and  mixtures.  Weeds  and  Agricul- 
tural Seeds  Act. 

Live  Stock. —  Care  and  management  of  various  classes 
of  farm  stock,  with  special  reference  to  breeding,  feeding, 
and  housing.  Principal  breeds  of  live  stock,  their  charac- 
teristics and  suitability  for  various  systems  of  farming. 

Feeding  Stuffs. —  Constituents  of  foods;  their  respective 
functions  and  value  in  animal  nutrition.  Valuation,  de- 
scription, properties  of  home-grown  and  purchased  feeding 
stuffs.  Impurities  and  adulterants.  Rations  for  various 
classes  of  farm  stock.  Methods  of  using  foods.  Ferti- 
lizers and  Feeding  Stuffs  Act. 

Dairying. —  Secretion  of  milk;  composition;  conditions 
influencing  the  quantity  and  quality  of  the  milk  yield. 
Care  and  treatment  of  milk  for  new  milk  trade  or  butter- 
making.  Cream  ripening.  Milk  records.  Improvement  of 
the  milking  qualities  of  herds.  Respective  merits  and 
demerits  of  the  several  systems  of  dairying.  Summer  and 
winter  dairying. 

Mensuration  and  Land  Surveying. —  Rules  for  estimating 
the  areas  of  the  principal  geometrical  figures  met  with  in 
chain  surveying  and  farm  calculations.  Field  book;  method 
of  entering  measurements;  calculation  and  computation  of 
areas.  Practical  work  with  the  chain  in  the  field.  Plotting 
from  the  field  book  to  given  scales.  Location  of  drains,  etc., 
on  the  plans  for  future  reference. 

Farm  Account  Keeping. —  Method  of  keeping  a  dairy, 
cash  book,  and  a  record  of  credit  transactions.  Farm  valua- 
tions and  stocktaking.  Balance  sheets,  their  interpretation. 
Estimates  of  the  cost  of  various  farm  operations,  etc. 

LIST  OF  EQUIPMENT  REQUIRED  AT  EACH  CENTER 

6  Flower  pot  basins,  6  to  8  inches  diameter. 

1  piece  Wire  Gauze,  6  inches  square. 

6  small  bottles  of  chemicals,  such  as  HCl,  NaOH 
(these  two  both  dilute);  limewater  and  methyl- 
ated Spirits. 

[77] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


12  Test  Tubes. 
1  Test  Tube  Stand. 

1  Tripod. 

2  Flasks. 

6  Beakers. 

6  Pocket  lenses. 

2  Porcelain  evaporating  basins. 

1  Glass  Funnel,  6  inches  diameter. 

1  Blackboard. 

1  Easel. 

1  Box  chalk  (also  colored  chalk  if  desired). 

1  Spirit  lamp. 

60  Bottles  (glass  honey  jars)  for  samples  of  seeds,  man- 
ures, and  feeding  stuffs. 

A  couple  of  strong  boxes,  furnished  with  locks,  should 
be  provided  for  storing  equipment  at  each  center. 

In  addition  to  the  above  equipment  the  following  articles 
may  be  used  at  more  than  one  center: 

1  Chain  and  arrows,  tape  and  offset  staff. 

1  Box  of  samples  of  grasses,  such  as  are  prepared  by 
seedsmen. 

Diagrams  of  the  more  common  injurious  insects,  etc., 
such  as  are  prepared  by  the  Royal  Agricultural 
Society  of  England. 

Collections  of  samples  of  grasses,  clovers,  manures,  and 
feeding  stuffs. 

SUMMARY  OF  THE  SECRETARY'S  VIEWS 

Secretary  Campbell  believes  that  the  salvation  of  back- 
ward farming  does  not  lie  in  the  teaching  of  agriculture  in 
the  public  schools,  or  in  the  multiplication  of  agricultural 
colleges  with  demonstration  farms  attached.  He  main- 
tains that  it  will  come  in  Ireland,  as  it  has  come  in  Holland, 
Denmark,  and  Germany,  through  "the  training  of  teachers 
and  experts,  the  appointment  of  itinerant  instructors 
in  every  branch  of  agriculture,  the  establishment  of  winter 
schools  and  of  agricultural  stations  for  experimental  and 
other  work  and  provisions  for  research." 

[78! 


AGRICULTURAL   INSTRUCTION   IN   IRELAND 

He  also  holds  that  too  much  stress  has  been  laid  upon 
scientific  instruction  and  too  little  upon  commercial  and 
practical  training,  each  of  which  he  regards  as  more  essential 
to  the  success  of  the  farmer  than  scientific  instruction. 
All  three  are  necessary,  as  farming  does  not  admit  of  the 
division  of  labor  that  counts  for  so  much  in  city  industry, 
but  no  amount  of  technical  or  scientific  education  can  com- 
pensate for  lack  of  the  knowledge  and  experience  that  can 
be  gained  only  on  the  farm. 

He  thinks  that  agriculture  can  be  taught  only  by  persons 
who  have  had  systematic  training  in  agricultural  science 
and  thorough  practice  on  a  real  farm.  He  deprecates  the 
confusion  existing  between  the  idea  of  simple  nature  study 
for  its  general  educational  value  and  the  idea  of  technical 
agricultural  training.  He  believes  that  nature  study  should 
pervade  the  atmosphere  of  the  elementary  rural  school,  and 
that  every  subject  taught  there  should  find  its  illustration  in 
rural  life.  But  the  study  of  technical  agriculture  trains  for 
a  special  calling  just  as  the  study  of  printing  or  engineering 
prepares  for  only  one  line  of  work,  while  nature  study  is 
cultural,  not  technical,  and  should  form  part  of  the  educa- 
tion of  every  pupil,  irrespective  of  the  calling  for  which  he 
is  fitting  himself. 

The  work  of  the  Department  has  been  influenced  by 
investigations  of  the  agricultural  schools  of  foreign  coun- 
tries, but  nothing  has  been  taken  bodily;  everything  has 
been  adapted  to  the  Irish  situation.  Every  visitor  whom 
I  have  met  has  been  greatly  impressed  by  the  clearness  of 
view  and  the  earnestness  of  purpose  of  those  administering 
the  technical  and  agricultural  schools  of  Ireland.  These 
schools  have  cooperated  successfully  with  the  national  ele- 
mentary, secondary,  and  parochial  schools;  and,  while  pre- 
serving their  own  independence  of  purpose  and  fields  of 
work,  they  have  been  able  to  assist  other  forms  of  educa- 
tional effort  without  arousing  hostility  or  jealousy.  This  is 
a  unique  experience  in  the  history  of  vocational  education. 


[79] 


CHAPTER  V 

INDUSTRIAL  INSTRUCTION  IN  IRELAND 

THE  previous  chapter  has  given  a  brief  description  of 
the  organization  of  the  department  for  agricultural 
and  technical  instruction.  As  was  stated  there,  each 
of  these  two  divisions  is  under  an  assistant  secretary,  Mr. 
George  Fletcher  having  charge  of  the  department  for  tech- 
nical instruction.  The  two  divisions  of  the  department  work 
in  the  closest  harmony,  as  is  shown  by  the  fact  that  manual 
instruction  and  domestic  economy  classes  in  the  rural 
districts  are  carried  on  under  the  management  of  the  Board 
of  Technical  Instruction,  supported  by  funds  provided  by 
the  Agricultural  Board.  Mr.  Fletcher's  division  has  at  its 
disposal  between  $250,000  and  $300,000  a  year.  This  is 
expended  in  aiding  a  system  of  itinerant  instruction,  trade 
preparatory  schools,  apprenticeship  scholarships,  technical 
instruction  for  both  boys  and  girls,  commercial  instruction 
and  training  of  teachers.  This  sum  is  divided  into  two 
parts.  Rather  less  than  half  (about  $130,000  in  1911-12)  is 
spent  on  schemes  for  technical  instruction  in  the  six  county 
boroughs;  less  than  half  (about  $100,000)  on  technical 
instruction  outside  the  county  boroughs,  and  the  remain- 
der for  scholarships,  the  training  of  teachers,  and  other 
purposes  that  help  the  whole  country. 

Besides  these  sums  the  Agricultural  Board  each  year 
gives  about  $52,500  for  manual  training  and  domestic 
economy  classes  in  rural  districts,  to  be  administered  by 
the  two  boards  together. 

Classes  in  lace,  crochet,  and  shirt-making  are  also 
financed  by  the  Agricultural  Board,  to  the  extent  of  $15,000 
in  1911-12. 

[80] 


TRADE  PREPARATORY  SCHOOL  OE  CORK,  IRELAND,  CONDI  (TED 
BY  THE  CHRISTIAN  BROTHERS 


TRADE  PREPARATORY  SCHOOL  OF  CORK.  IRELAND,  CONDUCTED 
BY  THE  CHRISTIAN  BROTHERS 


INDUSTRIAL  INSTRUCTION  IN   IRELAND 

SCHEMES  UNDER  LOCAL  AUTHORITIES 

The  schemes  for  technical  instruction  are  largely  ad- 
ministered by  the  local  authorities  in  order  to  meet  the 
local  industrial  needs  of  the  country.  The  Department  en- 
courage as  far  as  possible  schools  that  provide  suitable 
courses  of  instruction  for  industrial  students,  but  in  some 
smaller  centers  and  rural  districts  they  grant  assistance  in 
giving  instruction  in  single  subjects.  The  Department  has 
now  arranged  a  program  for  a  course  of  instruction  extend- 
ing over  four  years  in  a  limited  number  of  branches  of 
technical  knowledge.  At  present  they  give  examinations 
on  the  following  courses: 

Commerce.  Electrical  engineering. 

Building  trades.  Mechanical  engineering. 

Applied  chemistry.        Domestic  economy  and  Art. 

Provisional  certificates  are  granted  to  students  passing 
the  third  year  examinations  in  these  courses,  and  a  full 
course  certificate  is  awarded  on  the  passing  of  the  fourth 
year  examinations. 

The  authorities  of  each  school  are  required  to  organize 
courses  of  instruction  growing  out  of  the  local  industrial 
needs,  and  covering  generally  from  three  to  four  years.  In 
some  schools  a  preparatory  course  is  provided.  Instruction 
is  generally  given  in  evening  classes,  which  begin  at  six 
o'clock  throughout  the  week,  or  after  one  o'clock  on  Sat- 
urday. 

The  preparatory  courses  include  instruction  in  English, 
mathematics,  and  any  one  or  more  of  the  following  subjects : 

Experimental  science, 

Drawing, 

Manual  work  in  wood  or  metal. 

The  specialized  courses  of  instruction  consist  of  a  scheme 
of  two  or  more  subjects,  approved  by  the  Department,  and 
extending  over  two  or  three  years.  In  the  first  year  of  prep- 
aration students  must  take  at  least  two  and  not  more 
than  three  subjects,  and  in  subsequent  years  not  more 

[81] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


than  three  subjects,  one  subject  being  continued  through- 
out each  student's  course  of  study. 

The  subjects  included  in  the  specialized  course  of  study 
are: 

Group  A. —  Commercial  Subjects  (elementary) . 

This  group  includes  shorthand,  bookkeeping,  copying, 
indexing,  filing,  correspondence,  typewriting,  and  mechan- 
ical operations  concerned  with  postage,  telegraphy,  and 
banking. 

Group  B. —  Commercial  Subjects  (more  advanced). 

This  group  includes  economics,  commercial  law,  account- 
ancy, banking,  insurance,  commercial  history,  geography, 
languages,  mathematics,  etc. 

Group  C. —  Pure  and  Applied  Science. 

Under  pure  and  applied  science  are  placed  such  subjects 
as  mechanics,  physics,  chemistry,  biology,  botany,  zoology, 
physiology.  Under  applied  science  are  naval  architecture, 
navigation,  nautical  astronomy,  building  construction, 
machine  construction,  and  other  subjects  involving  syste- 
matic instruction  in  the  underlying  scientific  principles, 
classified  under  such  headings  as: 

(1)  Building  industries. 

(2)  Metal  industries. 

(3)  Textile  industries. 

(4)  Printing  and  process  industries. 

(5)  Furniture  industries. 

(6)  Leather  industries. 

(7)  Woodworking  industries. 

(8)  Carriage  building  industries. 

(9)  Electrical  industries. 

(10)  Chemical  industries. 

(11)  Agricultural  industries. 

Group  D. —  Handicraft  and  Domestic  Science. 

(1)  Handicraft  —  manual  instruction  in  wood  and 
metal,  woodcarving. 

[82] 


INDUSTRIAL  INSTRUCTION  IN  IRELAND 

(2)  Household  subjects,  including  cookery  and  hygiene, 
housewifery,  laundry-work,  dressmaking,  millinery,  needle- 
work. 

Group  E. —  Art  Subjects. 

Drawing,  (freehand  and  mechanical),  design,  painting, 
architecture,  modeling  and  applied  art,  such  as  black  and 
white  illustration,  goldsmiths',  silversmiths',  and  jewellers' 
work,  stained  glass  work,  mosaic,  enamelling,  and  any  other 
subject  of  applied  art  which  seems  to  be  required  by  the 
locality. 

DAY  SCHOOLS  FOR  APPRENTICES  AND  OTHERS 
ENGAGED  IN  BUSINESS 

Day  technical  or  commercial  schools  or  classes  are  carried 
on  in  conjunction  with  works,  business  houses,  or  technical 
schools  with  a  view  to  improving  the  condition  of  local 
industries  and  commerce,  and  to  the  training  of  tradesmen 
and  apprentices. 

Such  schools  must  be  open  on  one  or  more  days  of  the 
week,  not  later  than  six  o'clock  in  the  evening  or  one  o'clock 
on  Saturdays. 

The  accommodation  provided,  the  courses  of  instruction, 
the  syllabuses  of  the  subjects  taught,  the  qualifications  of 
the  teachers,  the  time-table  of  instruction,  and  the  estimate 
of  expenditure  must  be  approved  by  the  Department. 

A  number  of  day  trades  preparatory  schools  or  courses 
for  apprentices  have  been  established.  There  are  13  such 
schools  in  Ireland.  The  courses  are  three  years  long,  and 
aim  to  terminate  when  the  boy  is  about  16,  the  customary 
age  for  entering  apprenticeship  in  a  skilled  trade. 

Pupils  doing  satisfactory  work  in  trades  preparatory 
schools  and  making  definite  arrangements  to  continue  their 
instruction  in  the  evening  schools  while  completing  an 
apprenticeship,  are  given  scholarships.  The  system  seems 
to  be  encouraging  an  increasing  number  of  young  men  to 
enter  into  the  skilled  trades. 

Other  scholarships  are  awarded  to  boys  on  the  results 

[83] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


of  a  competitive  examination  held  annually.  Boys  who 
have  completed  work  equivalent  to  that  of  our  sixth  grade 
and  are  in  regular  attendance  at  a  primary  school,  an  ele- 
mentary evening  school  or  a  preparatory  course  of  an  even- 
ing technical  school,  are  eligible  for  this  examination. 

The  scholarships  are  of  two  kinds:  (a)  technical 
scholarships  and  (b)  apprentice  scholarships.  The  first 
are  given  to  boys  over  13  years  of  age  and  assist  them  to 
pay  expenses  in  a  day  technical  school,  an  approved  day 
trades  preparatory  school  or  some  other  industrial  school. 
The  scholarships  range  in  value  from  $25  to  $100.  They 
may  be  renewed  from  year  to  year  on  the  recommendation 
of  the  Department. 

The  apprentice  scholarship  can  be  continued  during  an 
apprenticeship  of  five  years.  It  is  a  condition  of  the  terms 
that  the  holder  be  with  a  firm  approved  by  the  Department, 
that  he  be  permitted  to  attend  approved  courses  of  instruc- 
tion, and  that  he  be  paid  for  the  time  spent  in  classes.  The 
Department's  inspectors  have  authority  to  visit  during  work- 
ing hours  the  places  where  the  apprentices  are  employed, 
and  the  Department  have  authority  to  cancel  the  inden- 
ture when  they  deem  such  a  course  advisable. 

Similar  scholarships  are  granted  to  girls  to  enable  them 
to  attend  regular  courses  of  instruction  and  training  in 
domestic  economy.  Each  scholarship  is  worth  $75  and  is 
tenable  at  residential  schools  of  domestic  economy  approved 
by  the  Department. 

At  first,  the  buildings  used  in  all  this  work  were  of  a 
somewhat  primitive  character,  disused  chapels,  old  fever 
hospitals,  jails,  and  in  one  case  a  room  under  a  large  town 
water  tank.  At  present,  however,  suitable  buildings  of  a 
permanent  character  have  been  provided  in  about  fifty 
places.  Other  buildings  are  projected  or  in  course  of  erection, 
and  there  are  many  somewhat  unsatisfactory  buildings 
which  are  being  made  to  do  good  service. 

The  following  table  shows  the  number  of  students  (with 
their  occupations)  attending  instruction  in  the  four  prov- 
inces : 

184] 


INDUSTRIAL  INSTRUCTION   IN   IRELAND 

YOUNG   MEN 

Persons  engaged  in  farming  occupations 2,644 

Building  trades — including  workers  in  wood,  etc 1,290 

Coach  and  car  builders '95 

Engineers,  workers  in  metal,  draughtsmen,  etc 1,499 

Architects,  surveyors,  civil  engineers,  etc 152 

Electrical  engineers,  scientific  instrument  makers,  etc 244 

Printing  trades — compositors,  lithographers,  etc 296 

Textile  industries — designers,  weavers,  etc 643 

Painters,  decorators,  etc 2S6 

Plumbers,  gasfitters,  etc 209 

Trades  involving  applied  art,  jewellers,  furniture  makers,  etc 228 

Chemists,  analysts,  druggists,  etc 260 

Salesmen,  shopkeepers,  warehousemen,  etc 1,531 

Clerks  in  commercial  offices 2,173 

Clerks  in  banks,  civil  service,  law,  assurance  and  accountants'  offices 836 

Teachers,  assistant  teachers,  pupil  teachers 722 

Students  (university,  law,  and  medical) 188 

Occupations  not  included  in  the  above  class 1,602 

Boys  just  left  school  or  college 470 

Boys  still  in  attendance  at  school  or  college 2,338 

No  occupation  stated 1 ,050 

Total  number  of  young  men 18,706 

Corresponding  numbers  for  1910-11 17,342 

YOUNG  WOMEN 

Persons  engaged  in  farming  occupations 4,529 

Domestic  servants 1,825 

Printing  trades 61 

Dressmakers,  milliners,  etc 789 

Textile  industries — designers,  weavers,  etc 619 

Factory  workers  not  included  in  above 902 

Workers  in  lace,  crochet,  embroidery,  sprigging,  drawn  thread  work,  etc.  1.752 

Saleswomen,  shopkeepers,  etc 1,425 

Clerks,  cashiers,  civil  service,  etc 1,293 

Teachers,  assistant  teachers,  pupil  teachers 1,946 

Students  (university,  medical) 140 

Occupations  not  included  in  above  classes 1,987 

Girls  just  left  school  or  college 900 

Girls  still  in  attendance  at  school  or  college 2,848 

No  occupation  stated 5,780 

Total  number  of  young  women 26,796 

Corresponding  numbers  for  1910-11 25,967 

Total  number  of  students 45,502 

Corresponding  numbers  for  1910-11 43,309 

SECONDARY  SCHOOLS 

The  Department  has  endeavored  to  stimulate  the  proper 
teaching  of  experimental  science  and  drawing  in  day  second- 
ary schools.  In  this  they  work  in  coordination  with  the 

[85] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


Board  of  Intermediate  Education.  Syllabuses  drawn  up 
by  the  Department  have  been  introduced,  and  have  stim- 
ulated a  much  higher  grade  of  work  in  these  subjects  than 
was  formerly  attained  in  these  schools.  The  Department 
grant  money  to  schools  doing  satisfactory  work  along  these 
lines,  under  their  inspection.  The  following  table  shows 
something  of  the  extent  of  this  work  during  the  past  ten 
years : 

No.  OF  PUPILS  WHO  WORKED  THROUGH  THE  COURSES  AND  UPON 
ACCOUNT  OF  WHOM  GRANTS  WERE  PAYABLE 


Year 

No.  of 
Schools 

Prelimi- 
nary 
Course, 
1st  Year 

Prelimi- 
nary 
Course, 
2nd  Year 

Special 
Courses, 
3rd  Year 

Special 
Courses, 
4th  Year 

Totals 
(I  ndivid- 
ual 
Pupils) 

Amount  of 
Grants 
Earned. 

£          s.    d. 

1901-  2 

154 

6,615 

6,615 

9,575  10     8 

1904-  5 

256 

5,091 

3,166 

1,267 

267 

9,791 

19,417     3     8 

1907-  8 

289 

6,213 

4,385 

2,059 

531 

13,115 

26,725     5     2 

1909-10 

285 

6,171 

4,289 

2,499 

554 

13,367 

27,955     4     0 

1911-12 

277 

6,200 

4,250 

2,300 

630 

13,380 

27,900     0     0 

The  figures  for  the  session  1911-12  are  only  approximate. 

THE  WORK  IN  RURAL  DISTRICTS 

Mr.  George  Fletcher  reported  at  the  Manchester  Con- 
gress in  1911  that  the  Department  had  endeavored: 

"(a)  To  carry  into  the  remote  parts  of  rural  Ireland 
such  forms  of  technical  education  as  are  suited  to  their 
needs;  that  is  to  say,  such  as  will  focus  effort  upon  the  home 
and  render  the  countryside  more  bright  and  prosperous. 

"(b)  To  give  facilities  for  the  boy  of  exceptional 
ability  to  continue  his  studies  in  a  center  where  suitable 
schools  exist,  and  to  direct  his  efforts  into  an  industrial 
channel. 

"The  first  of  these  objects  has  taken  the  form  of  courses 
of  instruction  in  domestic  science,  including  cookery, 
laundry  work,  home  sewing,  home  nursing  and  hygiene, 
manual  instruction  in  wood,  and  various  home  industries. 
These  courses  are  normally  of  six  weeks'  duration,  con- 
sisting of  daily  lessons,  but  they  are  often  extended  to  three 
months  or  even  longer.  The  organization  is  simple.  A 

[86] 


INDUSTRIAL  INSTRUCTION   IN   IRELAND 

room — as  suitable  as  may  be — is  rented  and  the  instructor 
takes  down  a  full  set  of  equipment  and  begins  work.  Hun- 
dreds of  these  courses  are  held  every  year  with  good  results. 
There  are  now  at  work  in  Ireland  some  110  domestic  econ- 
omy teachers  and  85  manual  instructors  in  small  towns  and 
rural  areas." 

TRAINING  OF  TEACHERS 

The  corps  of  teachers  is  made  up  of  practically  trained 
men  and  women,  almost  all  of  whom  are  connected  with 
work  outside  the  schools.  The  Department  have  insti- 
tuted courses  for  the  preparation  of  teachers  in  various 
subjects  in  all  the  larger  towns  of  Ireland.  Here  they 
have  adequate  laboratory  equipment  and  specially  trained 
teachers  to  conduct  summer  courses.  Teachers  who  are 
in  other  ways  qualified  are  required  to  attend  at  least  five 
such  courses  and  pass  an  examination  at  the  close.  These 
courses  have  been  carried  on  for  ten  years  and  are  attended 
by  600  or  700  persons  each  year. 

The  summer  courses  of  instruction  for  teachers  held  in 
July  and  August,  1912,  provided  for  instruction  in  experi- 
mental science  (physics,  chemistry,  physiology  and  hygiene, 
and  physical  and  commercial  geography),  drawing  and 
modelling,  domestic  economy,  advanced  cookery,  manual 
instruction  (woodwork),  manual  instruction  (metal work), 
practical  mathematics  and  mechanics,  handrailing,  office 
routine  and  business  methods,  and  rural  science  (including 
school  gardening). 

A  special  course  of  instruction  for  teachers  of  Limerick 
lace-making,  crochet- work,  embroidery,  and  sprigging  was 
also  held.  The  Department  provided  advanced  instruction 
at  the  Royal  College  of  Science  and  the  Metropolitan  School 
of  Art  at  Dublin;  the  Irish  Training  School  of  Domestic 
Economy  at  Stillorgan,  County  Dublin;  the  Municipal 
Technical  School  and  School  Garden  at  Kingston;  and  the 
Crawford  Municipal  School  of  Art  at  Cork  and  Belfast  and 
an  industrial  school  in  Dublin. 

The  Department  has  made  provision  for  training  teachers 

[87] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


of  commercial  subjects  by  providing  scholarships  at  the 
London  School  of  Economy  and  Political  Science. 

One  of  the  present  difficulties  is  the  unwillingness  of 
employers  to  have  their  plans  disturbed  and  to  permit  the 
boys  and  girls  to  attend  day  schools.  The  managers  of  the 
Department  feel  that  the  present  plan  of  giving  the  work 
almost  entirely  in  the  evening  is  a  mistake,  and  that  the 
instruction  given  will  lack  in  effectiveness  as  long  as  the 
present  situation  continues.  They  hope  that  employers 
will  take  a  different  attitude,  and  there  are  many  indica- 
tions of  a  change  in  feeling.  The  amount  of  day  work 
given  in  the  technical  schools  of  the  larger  towns  is  con- 
stantly increasing. 

The  Department  have  developed  a  system  of  instruction 
in  harmony  with  the  peculiar  needs  of  Ireland — a  system 
resting  upon  the  broad  foundation  of  a  good  general  educa- 
tion, and  a  special  corps  of  technically  trained  teachers  under 
the  control  of  special  boards  and  supervisors. 


[88 


AGRICULTURAL  WINTER  SCHOOL  OF  GROXIXGKX.  HOLLAND 


CLASS  ROOM  IN  WINTER  AGRICULTURAL   SCHOOL  OF  GRONINGEN, 

HOLLAND 


CHAPTER  VI 

AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION  IN  HOLLAND 

I.   THE  DEVELOPMENT  OF  THE  SYSTEM 

EARLY  EFFORTS 

THE  first  attempt  to  teach  agricultural  subjects  was 
made  in  1782,  when  two  professors  at  the  University 
of  Leyden  gave  lectures  on  agricultural  statistics. 

The  next  step  was  taken  when,  at  the  accession  of  King 
William  I,  the  professorship  of  agriculture  and  economics 
was  founded.  In  1816,  three  chairs  were  established  for 
these  subjects:  in  Utrecht,  Groningen,  and  Leyden;  but 
the  hopes  aroused  by  these  foundations  were  not  realized. 
At  first  the  courses  were  arranged  for  students  of  all  the 
faculties;  later  they  were  planned  especially  for  theological 
students.  It  was  thought  that  as  spiritual  advisers  they 
would  be  in  a  position  to  help  their  communities  in  matters 
connected  with  country  occupations.  But  all  these  plans 
fell  through,  for  the  lectures  were  not  attended.  . 

It  was  some  time  later  that  the  idea  suggested  itself  of 
giving  agricultural  instruction  directly  to  the  people  engaged 
in  that  work.  To  this  end  was  established  in  1842  an  agri- 
cultural school  in  Groningen-Haren,  which  received  support 
both  from  the  State  and  from  the  province.  At  first  it  was  a 
private  institution,  but  later  it  was  taken  over  by  the  Agri- 
cultural Association  of  the  Province  of  Groningen  and  was 
kept  open  until  the  seventies. 

The  majority  of  the  pupils  studied  forestry,  and  it  was  a 
severe  blow  to  the  school  when  the  Government  took  from 
it  the  right  to  train  forestry  officials.  As,  moreover,  the 
directors  of  the  school  could  not  agree  as  to  methods  of 
teaching,  the  attendance  fell  off  more  and  more,  and  the 
last  class  was  held  in  1871. 

[89] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


With  the  appointment  of  Dr.  Staring,  the  well-known 
geologist,  as  head  of  the  school  system  of  the  Netherlands,  a 
fresh  impulse  was  given  to  agricultural  education.  After  the 
discouraging  experiences  touched  upon  here,  he  concluded 
that  provincial  agricultural  schools  should  be  established 
as  centers  from  which  instruction  suited  to  the  different 
pursuits  of  the  various  provinces  should  be  given  through- 
out the  land.  He  succeeded  to  the  extent  of  adding  to  the 
secondary  schools  at  Warffum  (Groningen)  and  Wageningen 
(Gelderland)  departments  for  agricultural  instruction. 

The  school  at  Warffum  soon  came  to  an  end;  but  Wagen- 
ingen went  on  until  1876,  when  it  was  converted  into  the 
long-desired  National  Agricultural  School. 

Not  much  progress  was  made,  however,  until  1890,  when 
the  State  decided  to  take  agricultural  education  into  its 
own  hands  and  to  encourage  it  by  means  of  subsidies.  With 
this  step  began  the  real  success  of  the  system. 

Besides  the  National  Agricultural  School  at  Wageningen, 
there  were  before  1890  only  a  few  other  schools  in  which 
agriculture  was  studied,  some  agricultural  courses  estab- 
lished by  individuals  and  agricultural  associations,  and  a 
few  experiment  stations  of  little  importance.  Of  these  the 
only  institutions  that  still  survive  and  receive  state  aid  are : 

1.  A  horticultural  school  (at  Frederiksoord) . 

2.  A  general  course  in  forestry. 

3.  Lectures  on  the  care  of  horses,  swine,  poultry,  and 
bees  under  the  auspices  of  about  twelve  associations. 

These  are  subsidized  by  the  State  to  the  extent  of  about 
$8,500  a  year. 

STATE   TEACHERS   OF   AGRICULTURE   AND   HORTICULTURE 

The  first  State  teacher  of  agriculture  was  appointed  in 
1890  and  the  first  teacher  of  horticulture  in  1896.  Today 
the  whole  country  is  divided,  not  merely  into  provinces,  but 
into  districts,  thirteen  for  agriculture  and  twelve  for  horti- 
culture, in  each  of  which  a  State  teacher  is  in  charge.  The 
districts  for  the  two  subjects  do  not  coincide,  as  they  are 

[90] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION  IN  HOLLAND 

mapped  out  according  to  the  occupations  and  needs  of  the 
various  communities. 

The  importance  of  these  State  teachers  in  the  Dutch 
system  of  agricultural  education  can  scarcely  be  over- 
emphasized. In  1913,  there  were,  besides  the  twenty-five 
in  charge  of  districts,  three  attached  to  the  general  service, 
and  seven  assistants. 

These  men  are  all  trained  at  Wageningen,  and  have  to 
pass  a  special  examination,  and  work  as  assistants  for  two 
years  before  they  are  promoted  to  full  positions.  Some  of 
the  teachers,  as  well  as  their  assistants,  are  always  being 
used  for  special  service  at  home  or  abroad. 

As  a  rule,  however,  the  Director-General  of  Agriculture 
assigns  to  each  teacher  his  place  of  residence  and  the  district 
of  which  it  is  the  headquarters.  There,  subject  always  to 
transfer  according  to  the  needs  of  the  country,  he  performs 
his  multifarious  duties,  which  grow  more  and  more  numer- 
ous every  year. 

In  the  first  place,  the  State  teachers  plan  and  have  charge 
of  the  experiment  fields  and  gardens,  in  regard  to  which  they 
must  submit  an  annual  report. 

Of  these  there  were  in  1906  more  than  six  hundred,  from 
forty  to  fifty  in  a  province,  each  near  the  road  and  plainly 
labeled,  so  that  the  passing  farmers  can  see  with  their  own 
eyes  what  methods  are  most  successful  and  what  varieties  of 
seed  give  the  best  results.  These  fields  have  everywhere  an 
educative  effect.  The  farmers  almost  never  pass  them  by 
without  a  show  of  interest.  If,  for  example,  they  see  that 
their  turnip  crop  falls  short  of  that  shown  in  an  experiment 
field,  they  immediately  try  to  purchase  the  same  kind  of 
seed.  In  many  places  the  whole  neighborhood  watches  the 
experiments  all  summer  long  with  the  greatest  interest. 
Dr.  Frost,  who  wrote  the  monumental  work  on  the  practice 
and  study  of  agriculture  in  the  Netherlands,  found  an 
amusing  instance  of  this.  On  the  back  of  a  label  on  a  new 
sort  of  potatoes  in  an  experiment  field  had  been  scratched 
with  a  nail:  "These  are  no  good,  boertje  (little  farmer)." 

As  the  educational  value  of  this  work  is  so  clear,  the 

[91] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


planning  and  management  of  it  is  an  important  part  of  the 
State  teachers'  duty. 

Again,  they  must  hold  conferences  on  agricultural  and 
horticultural  problems.  These  meetings  are  free  to  all,  and 
after  the  formal  program  there  is  always  a  general  discus- 
sion. 

The  State  teachers  must  also  furnish  the  director  of  the 
plant  pathology  department  with  information  about  plant 
diseases  and  noxious  animals  in  their  respective  districts. 

They  also  assist  in  collecting  and  distributing  information 
for  summaries  on  the  condition  of  the  crops  and  for  agri- 
cultural statistics. 

It  is  a  part  of  their  duty  to  make  suggestions  to  the 
Minister  of  Agriculture,  to  the  Queen's  Commissioners,  and 
to  give  advice  gratuitously  to  the  farmers  and  gardeners  in 
their  districts  on  any  subject  pertaining  to  agriculture  and 
horticulture. 

They  are  obliged  to  keep  up  with  the  work  of  agricultural 
societies  and  associations,  to  keep  in  touch  with  the  officers  of 
these  societies,  and  to  assist  at  the  meetings  of  such  bodies. 

Nine  teachers  of  agriculture  and  five  of  horticulture  are 
at  the  head  of  the  fourteen  winter  schools  in  which  farmers' 
boys  who  have  finished  the  elementary  school  and  have  had 
some  experience  in  practical  agriculture  and  horticulture, 
are  given  the  theoretical  background  that  they  lack,  which 
is  bound  to  contribute  to  their  success.  The  State  teachers 
who  are  directors  of  these  schools  are  exempt  from  some 
other  duties,  especially  from  holding  conferences. 

The  State  teachers  direct  all  courses  for  elementary 
teachers  who  are  working  for  diplomas  in  elementary  agri- 
culture, the  winter  courses  for  adults  and  soldiers,  the  courses 
in  veterinary  work  and  horse-shoeing,  and  other  special 
courses,  as  well  as  the  courses  for  young  country  girls  and 
women. 

Twice  a  year  they  must  attend  meetings  under  the 
auspices  of  the  Department  of  Agriculture.  At  one  of 
these  conferences  the  Inspector  of  Agriculture  presides  and 
at  the  other  the  Inspector  of  Agricultural  Education; 

[92] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION  IN  HOLLAND 

and  all  sorts  of  problems  relating  to  the  work  of  the  State 
teachers  in  agriculture  and  agricultural  education  are  dis- 
cussed. 

At  home  they  have  their  hours  for  consultation  - 
very  often  on  market  days.  They  send  out  much  infor- 
mation by  mail.  They  travel  about  a  great  deal  to  give 
advice  on  the  spot,  to  visit  courses,  to  make  investigations, 
and  to  hold  conferences.  In  all  these  ways  they  keep  in 
touch  with  agricultural  progress,  and  never  lose  sight  of 
the  practical  side  of  their  subject. 

The  State  teachers  are  under  the  general  jurisdiction 
of  both  the  Inspector  of  Agriculture  and  the  Inspector  of 
Agricultural  Education;  and  at  the  end  of  each  year  they 
make  a  detailed  report  of  their  various  activities  to  the 
Director-General. 

To  sum  up,  the  Dutch  state  teachers  correspond  in  their 
function  to  the  German  and  Irish  itinerant  teachers. 

WINTER  SCHOOLS  OF  AGRICULTURE  AND  HORTICULTURE 

In  close  connection  with  the  appointment  of  State 
teachers  of  agriculture  and  horticulture  arose  the  winter 
schools  for  teaching  these  subjects.  The  first  was  estab- 
lished at  Groningen  in  1893.  In  1913,  there  were  fourteen 
(nine  of  agriculture  and  five  of  horticulture),  each  in  charge 
of  a  State  teacher. 

The  nine  winter  schools  of  agriculture  are  at  Groningen, 
Veendam,  Leeuwarden,  Meppel,  Zutphen,  Schogen,  Dor- 
drecht, Goes,  and  Sittard. 

The  five  winter  schools  of  horticulture  are  at  Aalsmeer, 
Lisse,  Naaldwijk,  Boskoop,  and  Tiel. 

WINTER  COURSES 

Poor  farmers,  however,  could  not  spare  their  sons  from 
the  home  work  or  afford  them  money  for  board  and  lodg- 
ing while  they  were  attending  winter  schools.  More- 
over, a  large  proportion  of  the  adult  rural  population  could 
never  be  reached  at  all  by  the  activities  of  the  State  teachers. 
The  next  step,  then,  was  to  establish  winter  courses  for 

[93] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


boys  and  for  adults  —  a  new  form  of  agricultural  education 
on  a  still  lower  plane.  A  few  such  courses  had  been  given 
earlier,  but  without  much  result;  and  in  order  to  put  them 
on  a  sound  basis  and  make  them  effective,  the  State  under- 
took to  train  teachers  especially  for  this  work.  In  1893, 
these  courses  for  teachers  of  elementary  agriculture  and 
horticulture  were  inaugurated  and  put  under  the  direction 
of  the  State  teachers.  In  1913,  sixteen  such  courses  were 
given. 

During  this  year  406  winter  courses  in  agriculture  and 
120  winter  courses  in  horticulture  were  given  for  boys, 
and  130  in  agriculture  and  78  in  horticulture  for  adults. 

In  1905-6,  the  Government  first  organized  winter 
courses  for  soldiers  in  garrison,  at  which  attendance  was 
voluntary.  In  1912-13,  sixteen  such  courses  were  given. 

Courses  in  horse-shoeing  began  as  early  as  1885,  and 
courses  in  veterinary  work  have  also  been  added. 

DAIRY  INSPECTORS 

Similar  to  the  work  of  the  State  teachers  of  agriculture 
and  horticulture  is  that  done  by  the  dairy  inspectors,  who, 
although  they  are  not  government  officials  but  employees 
of  provincial  agricultural  associations,  receive  state  aid  in 
their  work. 

The  first  dairy  inspector  was  appointed  by  the  Agri- 
cultural Society  of  Friesland;  and  in  1913  there  were  twelve, 
one  for  each  province,  and  in  Groningen  two. 

The  duties  of  these  men  are: 

a.  To  hold  conferences  about  dairying. 

b.  To  give  courses  in  dairying. 

c.  To  give  advice  and  information  on  the  subject  to 
associations  or  individuals. 

d.  To  assist  in  the  establishment  of  dairies. 

e.  To  supply  an  expert  personnel  for  dairies. 

/.  To  have  milk  analyzed  and  to  eliminate  cows  of 
little  value. 

g.  To  analyze  dairy  products,  and  in  general  to  carry 
out  state  or  provincial  instructions  in  regard  to  dairying. 

[94] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION  IN  HOLLAND 

Owing  to  difficulties  in  the  financing  of  these  officers, 
the  State  began  in  1912  gradually  to  take  them  over  as 
government  officials.  This  change  is  now  almost  accom- 
plished. 

II.    SURVEY  OF  THE  SYSTEM 

The  Dutch  system  of  agricultural  and  horticultural 
education  may  be  outlined  as  follows: 

A.  Advanced: 

State  High  School  of  Agriculture,  Horticulture,  and 
Forestry  at  Wageningen. 

B.  Secondary: 

1.  School  of  Agriculture  at  Groningen. 

2.  School  of  Colonial  Agriculture  at  Deventer. 

3.  State  Dairy  School  at  Bolsward. 

4.  Fourteen  State  Winter  Schools  (nine  of  agricul- 
ture, five  of  horticulture). 

5.  Gerard  Adrian  van  Swieten  School  of  Horticul- 
ture at  Frederiksoord. 

6.  Forestry  School  of  the  Dutch  Society  in  Utrecht 
for  the  Development  for  Moorland. 

7.  State  Veterinary  School  at  Utrecht. 

8.  Blacksmith    schools    at    Amersfoort,   Tiel,    and 
Groningen. 

C.  Elementary  (in  1913): 

1.  406  winter  courses  in  agriculture,  120  in  horti- 
culture, for  boys. 

2.  130  winter  courses  in  agriculture,  78  in  horti- 
culture, for  men. 

3.  16  winter  courses  for  soldiers  in  garrisons. 

4.  80  courses  in  veterinary  work. 

5.  17  courses  in  horseshoeing. 

6.  Courses  in  dairying. 

(Figures  not  given  for  1913;  178  between  1907- 
1911.) 

D.  Training  of  elementary  teachers  of  agriculture  and 
horticulture  (1913:  16  courses). 

E.  Training  of  country  girls  and  women. 

[95] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


1.  De  Rollecate  State  School  of  Home  Economics 
at  Dedemsvaart. 

2.  Schools  of  country  housekeeping  at  Lierop  and 
in  several  other  places. 

3.  Summer  courses  in  country  housekeeping  given 
in  winter  agricutural  schools  at  Veendam   and 
elsewhere. 

4.  Continued  courses  for  farmers'  daughters. 

5.  Short  courses  for  wives  and  daughters  (over  18) 
of  working  men. 

6.  Courses  in  agriculture  for  women  farmers. 

7.  Short  courses  in  dairying,  feeding  stock,  etc. 
(Figures  are  not  given  as  the  work  is  still  so  new.) 

Thus,  in  little  Holland,  not  much  more  than  one-fifth  the 
size  of  Illinois,  there  are,  besides  one  agricultural  school  for 
the  most  advanced  work,  no  less  than  23  secondary  schools. 
In  1913,  sixteen  special  courses  for  training  teachers  of  ele- 
mentary agriculture  were  given,  and  about  1,000  courses 
(847  were  counted  and  the  figures  are  incomplete)  were 
given  to  the  country  people  at  large.  This  does  not  include 
conferences  and  single  lectures,  of  which,  for  example,  807 
were  given  between  1907-1911 — an  average  of  160  a  year — 
by  the  dairy  inspectors  alone. 

THE  STATE  AGRICULTURAL  SCHOOL  AT  WAGENINGEN 

The  purpose  of  this  school  is  to  give  a  scientific  training 
to  the  sons  of  rich  landowners,  prosperous  farmers,  and 
breeders  on  a  large  scale,  and  especially  to  train  experts 
for  the  service  of  the  State,  various  societies  and  associations, 
and  individuals.  Here  are  educated  State  teachers  of 
agriculture  and  horticulture;  professors  in  the  agricultur- 
al and  horticultural  schools;  dairy  inspectors;  assistants, 
chemists,  and  experts  for  experiment  stations;  officials  of 
the  forestry  service,  both  at  home  and  in  the  colonies; 
officials  of  the  Netherland  Society  for  the  Development  of 
Moorland;  employers  for  agricultural  industries  at  home 
and  in  the  colonies.  Finally,  the  school  is  the  headquarters 
for  research  in  agriculture,  horticulture,  and  forestry. 

[96] 


It  is  managed  by  a  director  and  an  administrative 
council,  made  up  of  twelve  professors  appointed  by  the 
Minister  of  Agriculture,  Industry  and  Commerce. 

The  staff  consists  of  the  director,  twenty-nine  pro- 
fessors, eight  assistants,  two  engineers,  a  librarian,  an 
administrative  officer,  twenty-three  employees,  and  thirty- 
four  work  people. 

Six  courses  are  given: 

1.  Agriculture  in  the  Netherlands. 

2.  Colonial  Agriculture. 

3.  Forestry  in  the  Netherlands. 

4.  Colonial  Forestry. 

5.  Chemistry  and  Agricultural  Technology. 

6.  Horticulture. 

Each  course  extends  over  three  years;  but  special  work 
may  also  be  arranged. 

Students  are  admitted  on  examination  after  finishing 
a  five-year  course  at  a  secondary  school. 

The  fee  is  eighty  florins  a  year  (about  $32.00);  and 
there  is  a  scale  of  fees  for  special  courses. 

The  work  of  the  first  year  is  preparatory.  The  prelim- 
inary work  in  science,  in  physics,  mechanics,  and  economics 
is  reviewed  and  continued.  The  choice  of  subjects  is 
carefully  adapted  to  the  course  chosen.  In  order  to  com- 
bine the  auxiliary  sciences  and  applied  science,  among  the 
first-year  studies  is  included  the  theory  of  plant  cultiva- 
tion. Some  time  is  given  to  practical  work  in  the  labora- 
tories and  in  the  experiment  fields.  The  professional 
training  proper  for  the  next  two  years  is  continued  on  the 
scientific  basis  of  the  first  year  and  specialized  for  the  dif- 
ferent sections. 

The  subjects  studied  by  all  sections  throughout  the 
course  are:  physics,  meteorology,  botany  (physiology  of 
plants  and  plant  pathology),  geology  and  mineralogy, 
chemistry  (with  special  reference  to  agriculture),  economics, 
drawing,  plant  culture,  mathematics,  surveying  and  naviga- 
tion, mechanics,  improvement  of  the  soil,  fertilizers,  etc. 

In   the  section   for  Dutch   agriculture,   there  are  also 

[97] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


courses  in  anatomy  and  physiology,  country  architecture, 
working  the  soil,  agricultural  machinery,  breeding,  book- 
keeping, forestry  and  civil  law,  agricultural  technology, 
dairying,  veterinary  work,  etc. 

In  the  section  for  horticulture,  the  classification  of 
plants,  landscape  gardening,  systematic  culture  of  garden 
plants,  tree,  fruit,  vegetable,  and  flower  culture  are  em- 
phasized. 

In  the  sections  for  colonial  agriculture  and  horticulture, 
the  government  and  ethnography  of  the  East  Indies,  the 
Javanese  and  Malay  languages,  and  the  special  crops  grown 
in  the  colonies  are  studied. 

In  the  same  way  the  sections  for  forestry  and  chemistry 
and  agricultural  technology  develop  special  branches  of 
the  work. 

The  fourth  year  is  planned  for  students  who  wish  to 
specialize  still  further. 

For  the  use  of  the  students  there  are  laboratories  and 
collections  of  materials  and  implements.  Experiment  fields, 
plots  for  plant  pathology  and  all  sorts  of  special  cultures, 
botanical  gardens  and  a  farm,  all  contribute  to  give  a  really 
practical  education.  There  is  a  library  of  12,000  scientific 
works  besides  the  periodicals  on  this  subject. 

There  is  an  examination  at  the  end  of  each  year,  and  at 
the  end  of  the  first  year  the  Colonial  Minister  chooses 
those  who  have  done  especially  well  to  be  candidates  for 
positions  as  foresters  (ingenieurs  forestiers)  in  the  Indian 
service. 

Connected  with  this  school  are  special  institutes: 

1.  The  Laboratory  for  the  Sugar  Industry.     This  is 
planned  to  train  chemists  for  sugar  factories  and  is  open 
to  those  who  have  completed  the  course  in  Dutch  or  Colonial 
agriculture,   or  its  equivalent.     Students  must  also  have 
worked  for  a  season  in  a  sugar  factory. 

2.  The    Institute    for    Agricultural    Machinery.     This 
was  opened  in  1905.     Its  aims  are: 

(a)     To  give  instruction  as  to  the  purchase  and  use 
of  agricultural  machines  and  implements. 

[98] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION   IN  HOLLAND 

(6)     To  do  research  work  in  agricultural  mechanics. 

(c)  To  give  advice  to  farmers  and  agricultural 
associations  about  the  construction  and  alteration  of 
buildings  used  for  agricultural  purposes. 

3.  The  Institute  for  Plant  Pathology. 
This  undertakes: 

(a)  To  give  information  about  the  diseases  of 
plants,  parasites,  and  noxious  insects,  and  the  methods  of 
combating  them. 

(6)     To  make  researches  along  these  lines. 

4.  The  Institute  for  the  Improvement  of  Cultivated 
Plants.     This  was  opened  in  1912.     It  aims  to  produce  new 
good  varieties  while  conserving  what  is  valuable  among  the 
old,  and  to  aid  all  other  efforts  for  the  improvement  of  plants. 

The  number  of  students  at  Wageningen  in  1911-12 
was  229,  of  which  213  were  in  the  regular  courses. 

In  1912,  the  elementary  school  of  agriculture  which 
had  also  existed  at  Wageningen  was  closed  because  of  the 
difficulty  of  handling  together  pupils  who  were  studying 
for  the  Indies  and  for  agricultural  pursuits  at  home.  In 
its  place  were  established  the  agricultural  schools  at  Gron- 
ingen  and  Deventer,  the  former  planned  for  boys  who  mean 
to  stay  in  the  home  country  and  the  latter  for  those  who 
are  going  to  the  East  Indies. 

THE  SECONDARY  SCHOOL  OF  AGRICULTURE  AT  GRONINGEN 

This  school  admits  students  on  examination  after  three 
years  in  a  secondary  school,  instead  of  five  years,  as  at 
Wageningen.  They  must  be  about  fifteen  years  old. 

The  course  is  two  and  one-half  years  long.  It  is  ar- 
ranged for  the  sons  of  prosperous  farmers,  for  whom  the 
course  at  Wageningen  is  not  suitable  because  it  keeps 
them  too  long  away  from  the  practical  work  on  the  farm, 
while,  on  the  other  hand,  the  winter  schools  do  not  give  them 
a  sufficiently  thorough  training  to  enable  them  to  take  their 
places  in  the  vanguard  of  agricultural  progress. 

The  tuition  is  fifty  florins  a  year  (about  $20.00). 

The  school  is  in  a  fine  building,  which  is  also  used  by 

[99] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


the  winter  school  of  agriculture.  The  two  schools  are 
managed  by  one  director  and,  to  some  extent,  taught  by 
the  same  teachers.  The  building  is  provided  with  class- 
rooms, laboratories,  and  demonstrating  rooms  for  the  study 
of  horses,  cattle,  and  various  agricultural  products.  In  one 
room  I  found  a  commission  examining  about  forty  samples 
of  barley  raised  in  various  parts  of  Holland.  In  another 
room  I  saw  samples  of  beets  for  sugar  manufacture,  all 
labeled  according  to  the  value  placed  upon  them  by  another 
commission.  In  a  third,  samples  of  potatoes  were  awaiting 
the  examination  of  a  commission.  A  fourth  room  was 
devoted  to  the  examination  of  butter  sent  in  by  the  farmers. 
It  was  impossible  for  me  to  separate  the  parts  of  the  work 
belonging  to  the  winter  school  from  the  secondary  work. 

In  one  room  with  raised  seats,  like  some  lecture  rooms 
in  American  high  schools,  there  was  a  space  with  a  stone 
floor  where  cattle,  horses  and  farm  machinery,  could  be 
brought  before  the  class  for  examination  and  appraisement. 
In  the  next  room  there  were  model  stalls  for  cattle  and  horses 
and  a  space  for  storing  agricultural  machinery  to  be  exam- 
ined by  the  class.  From  this  room  these  animals  or  ma- 
chines could  be  brought  into  the  demonstration  room  when 
wanted. 

On  one  side  of  the  building  there  were  demonstration 
plots  devoted  to  raising  characteristic  products  of  Dutch 
agriculture;  on  the  other  side  of  the  building  there  were  plats 
of  different  types  of  Dutch  soil  to  be  studied  by  the  students, 
one  of  sandy  soil,  one  of  clay,  and  one  of  peat  or  turf.  Stu- 
dents were  shown  the  best  methods  of  working  and  fertilizing 
each  of  these  sorts  of  soil. 

THE  SECONDARY  SCHOOL  OF  COLONIAL  AGRICULTURE 
AT  DEVENTER 

This  school  prepares  general  agriculturists  (not  special- 
ists) for  the  East  Indies. 

The  entrance  requirements  are  the  same  as  at  Gro- 
ningen;  the  course  is  three  years  long,  and  the  tuition  is 
sixty  florins  (about  $24.00)  a  year. 

[100] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION   IN   HOLLAND 

THE  STATE  DAIRY  SCHOOL  AT  BOLSWARD 

This  school  was  opened  in  1904  to  train  directors  for 
dairy  work. 

Since  1908  the  regular  course  has  been  two  years  long, 
while  special  temporary  courses  for  various  phases  of  the 
work  are  organized  from  time  to  time. 

Students  must  be  eighteen  years  old  and  must  have  a 
certificate  showing  that  they  have  worked  at  least  a  year 
and  a  half  in  a  cheese  factory.  They  must  pass  an  exam- 
ination in  reading,  spelling,  arithmetic,  algebra,  geometry, 
geography,  and  natural  history. 

The  tuition  is  forty  florins  ($18.00)  a  year. 

The  teaching  is  theoretical,  but  there  are  practical 
exercises  and  excursions  for  study  connected  with  the 
work. 

During  the  summer  vacation  between  the  two  years 
pupils  are  required  to  do  practical  work  in  the  dairies  to 
which  they  are  assigned  by  the  Director,  to  keep  notes  of 
their  work  and  observations,  and  to  submit  a  detailed  report 
at  the  end  of  the  vacation. 

The  course  of  study  includes:  dairying,  bacteriology 
chemistry,  physics  and  mechanics,  mathematics,  feeding 
and  hygiene  of  stock,  bookkeeping  and  commercial  arith- 
metic, commercial  correspondence  in  Dutch,  the  same  and 
professional  literature  in  French,  German,  and  English,  and 
practical  exercises. 


THE  STATE  WINTER  SCHOOLS  OF  AGRICULTURE  AND 
HORTICULTURE 

The  object  of  these  schools  is  to  give  country  boys  the 
chance  to  obtain,  at  very  little  expense,  the  theoretical 
knowledge  necessary  to  make  them  successful  farmers  and 
gardeners. 

Each  school  is  managed  by  a  director,  who  is  usually  a 
State  teacher  of  agriculture,  and  under  the  supervision  of 
the  district  inspector  of  agricultural  education,  aided  by  a 

[101] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


local  committee  of  not  less  than  five  members,  appointed 
by  the  Minister  of  Agriculture. 

These  schools  have  two  classes  in  a  course  extending 
through  two  winter  semesters. 

The  pupils  must  be  sixteen  years  old  and  pass  an  exam- 
ination in  reading,  Dutch,  writing,  and  arithmetic.  More- 
over, they  must  show  that  they  have  the  necessary  aptitude 
to  profit  by  the  course.  Some  practical  knowledge  of 
agriculture  or  horticulture  is  also  required. 

The  instruction  is  theoretical  and  is  based  upon  the 
actual  conditions  of  the  province  and  district  in  which  each 
school  is  situated. 

The  course  of  study  for  agriculture  includes:  properties 
of  arable  land,  working  and  improvement  of  the  soil,  agri- 
cultural machinery,  fertilizers,  plant  culture,  plant  pa- 
thology, appraisement  of  cattle,  breeding,  hygiene,  feeding 
of  stock,  dairying,  agricultural  economics,  bookkeeping, 
chemistry,  physics,  botany,  zoology,  Dutch,  mathematics, 
fruit  culture,  vegetable  culture,  and  bee-keeping. 

The  horticultural  course  includes  many  of  the  same 
fundamental  subjects,  with  special  study  of  botany,  zoology, 
meteorology,  tree  culture,  flower  culture,  bulb  culture, 
construction  of  frames  and  systems  of  heating,  country 
architecture,  etc. 

The  winter  semester  is  from  October  15  to  March  1, 
with  usually  twenty-five  or  more  hours  a  week. 

The  winter  schools  of  agriculture  have  demonstration 
plots,  and  the  schools  of  horticulture  use  the  State  ex- 
periment gardens. 

In  1912-13,  the  attendance  at  the  schools  of  agriculture 
was  2,096,  and  at  the  schools  of  horticulture  795. 

Each  school  has  its  own  building  and  equipment,  except 
the  one  at  Groningen,  which  is  in  the  same  building  with 
the  secondary  school.  All  the  directors  areState  teachers 
of  agriculture  or  horticulture. 

The  tuition  fee  for  the  entire  course  is  from  about  $4.25 
to  $8.50,  and  pupils  may  arrange  to  take  only  part  of  the 
work.  An  industrious  pupil  who  cannot  afford  to  pay  any- 

[102] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION   IN  HOLLAND 

thing  is  given  tuition  as  well  as  books  and  other  necessary 
equipment  by  the  State.  But  the  pupils  must  find  their 
own  board  and  lodging,  as  only  a  small  proportion  of  them 
are  able  to  return  home  even  for  week-ends. 

The  Director  consults  with  parents  and  guardians  as 
to  where  the  boys  can  most  profitably  spend  the  months 
between  the  two  semesters  (that  is,  March  15  to  October 
15) ;  if  possible,  he  visits  them,  and  he  is  in  constant  touch 
with  them  by  means  of  correspondence. 

Dr.  Frost,  after  making  his  detailed  survey  of  Dutch 
agricultural  education,  said,  in  1906,  that,  although  the 
winter  schools  fulfilled  their  purpose  in  giving  a  number 
of  persons  a  thorough  training,  their  influence  was  not  very 
great  because  most  of  the  farmers  could  not  afford  to  send 
their  sons  to  them.  It  is  to  be  noted,  however,  that  the 
attendance  has  practically  doubled  during  the  last  six 
years. 

THE  GERARD  ADRIAAN  VAN  SWIETEN  HORTICULTURAL 
SCHOOL  AT  FREDERIKSOORD 

This  is  a  private  school  founded  in  1884,  but  it  now  re- 
ceives an  annual  State  subsidy  of  five  thousand  florins 
($2,000.00).  Its  aim  is  to  make  good  practical  gardeners. 
The  boys  must  be  fifteen  years  old  and  of  suitable  physique. 
The  instruction  is  practical  as  well  as  theoretical,  and  there 
is  a  large  garden  connected  with  the  school. 

THE  FORESTRY  SCHOOL  OF  THE  DUTCH  SOCIETY  IN 
UTRECHT  FOR  THE  DEVELOPMENT  OF  MOORLAND 

In  1902,  the  above-named  Society  decided  to  establish 
a  school  to  train  its  own  officials,  while  admitting  also  pupils 
intending  to  enter  the  service  of  the  State  or  of  individuals, 
as  foresters. 

The  instruction  is  theoretical  for  two  winter  semesters, 
and  during  the  summer  the  pupils  work  at  enterprises 
carried  on  by  the  Society  and  by  the  State. 

The  course  of  study  includes:    general  forestry,  forest 

[108] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


protection,  measurement  of  timber,  forest  development, 
forest  economics,  the  soil  and  climate  of  the  Netherlands, 
irrigation  and  cultivation  of  the  prairies,  drainage,  physics 
and  chemistry,  fertilization,  fresh-water  fishing,  surveying 
and  navigation,  drawing  and  map-making,  engineering 
(civil  and  hydraulic),  natural  history,  mathematics,  Dutch, 
bookkeeping,  mechanics,  drawing  plans  and  making  reports, 
hunting,  etc. 

The  pupils  must  be  eighteen  or  nineteen  years  old,  and 
the  work  is  divided  into  two  sections,  of  which  one  is  more 
advanced  than  the  other. 

OTHER  SPECIAL  SCHOOLS 

There  is  a  State  Veterinary  School,  founded  in  1821,  at 
Utrecht,  with  a  four-years'  course;  but  the  attendance  is 
still  very  small. 

There  are  also  several  schools  of  horse-shoeing. 

ELEMENTARY  AGRICULTURAL  EDUCATION 

For  the  great  number  of  farm  boys  whose  parents  cannot 
afford  to  send  them  to  a  winter  school,  winter  courses  are 
given  all  over  the  country.  In  1912-13,  there  were  406 
winter  courses  in  agriculture  and  120  in  horticulture. 

These  courses  are  organized  partly  by  agricultural  and 
horticultural  societies  and  partly  by  the  communities  in 
which  they  are  given,  and  they  receive  State  aid.  They 
are  under  the  general  supervision  of  the  State  teachers. 

The  instruction  is  given  by  teachers  who  have  received, 
as  the  result  of  special  courses  of  study  and  a  special  exam- 
ination, a  diploma  to  teach  elementary  agriculture  or  horti- 
culture. They  are  assisted  by  general  teachers,  and,  in 
the  practical  work,  by  veterinarians,  gardeners,  etc. 

The  courses  include: 

1.  The  principles  of  physics,  chemistry,  botany,  and 
zoology,  including  the  recognition  of  injurious  animals  and 
the  diseases  of  plants. 

2.  Study  of  the  soil,  the  working  and  improvement  of 
the  soil. 

[104] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION   IN  HOLLAND 

3.  Plant  culture. 

4.  Breeding  of  animals  and  dairying. 

5.  Fertilizers. 

The  courses  in  horticulture  are  the  same,  except  that 
the  cultivation  of  fruits,  vegetables,  flowers,  and  trees  is 
substituted  for  strictly  agricultural  work. 

The  teaching  is  always  based  upon  the  needs  of  the 
province  or  the  district  in  which  it  is  given,  and  each  course 
continues  for  at  least  two  winters,  with  from  144  to  225 
lessons  a  winter,  given  usually  in  the  evening,  twice  a  week. 

The  Government  furnishes  money  for  teachers'  salaries, 
materials,  etc.,  on  certain  conditions  which  keep  the  general 
management  of  the  work  in  its  hands.  The  community  is 
expected  to  furnish  a  place  for  the  classes,  together  with 
light  and  heat. 

COURSES  IN  AGRICULTURE  AND  HORTICULTURE  FOR 
ADULTS 

Some  of  these  courses  consist  of  from  six  to  twelve 
lessons  of  two  hours  each  for  farmers  and  gardeners  over 
twenty-one  years  of  age.  They  are  planned  to  give  adults 
the  most  important  principles  of  various  branches  of  the 
work  in  which  they  are  engaged.  They  are  also  open  to 
the  younger  men  who  have  a  diploma  of  a  winter  course  in 
agriculture  or  horticulture. 

Other  courses  are  arranged  especially  for  young  farmers 
and  gardeners  who  have  already  studied  at  an  agricultural 
institution. 

In  1912^13,  there  were  130  such  courses  in  agriculture 
and  78  in  horticulture. 

COURSES  FOR  SOLDIERS  IN  GARRISON 

These  are  given  once  or  twice  a  week,  in  December, 
January,  and  February,  about  twenty  hours  altogether. 
Attendance  is  voluntary,  but  the  soldiers  who  register  must 
keep  up  the  work. 

The  instruction  is  on  various  phases  of  agriculture. 
It  is  given  by  teachers  with  the  required  diploma  to  teach 

[105] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


this  subject,  and  is  under  the  State  teacher  of  the  district 
in  which  the  garrison  is  established,  and  the  Inspector  of 
Agricultural  Education. 

VARIOUS  OTHER  COURSES 

(a)  Courses  in  veterinary  work  are  organized  by  pro- 
vincial agricultural  associations,  aided  by  the  State. 

A  tuition  fee  of  $1.00  a  person  helps  out  with  expenses. 

The  courses  consist  usually  of  twelve  lessons  of  two  hours 
each.  The  work  is  both  theoretical  and  practical. 

The  teacher  is  a  veterinarian  who  has  the  required  diplo- 
ma, under  the  direction  of  a  local  committee  and  of  the 
State  teacher  of  the  district. 

(6)  Courses  in  horseshoeing  have  been  given  since 
1885  in  all  the  provinces  but  two.  They  are  subsidized 
by  the  State  or  province.  There  is  an  entrance  fee  of 
from  $1.00  to  $4.00. 

The  theoretical  teaching  is  done  by  veterinarians,  and 
the  practical  work  is  given  by  blacksmiths. 

Pupils  must  be  at  least  twenty  years  old  and  of  strong 
constitution,  and  must  be  able  to  read  and  write  and  to 
pass  a  practical  examination  in  horseshoeing. 

The  work  must  be  equivalent  to  four  months,  distributed 
over  a  period  of  two  years. 

In  1912-13,  eighty  courses  were  given  in  veterinary 
work  and  seventeen  in  horseshoeing. 

(c)    Conferences  and  Miscellaneous  Courses. 

Most  of  the  conferences  and  courses  given  by  the  State 
teachers,  milk  inspectors,  and  other  professors  and  teachers, 
at  the  request  of  different  societies  and  associations,  and 
subsidized  by  the  State,  form  a  part  of  the  system  of  ele- 
mentary education. 

The  Dutch  Society  of  Horticulture  and  Botany  employs 
two  itinerant  teachers  who  give  in  the  various  sections  of 
the  Society  lectures  and  hold  conferences  on  the  cultivation 
of  flowers,  vegetables,  and  fruits. 

The  Association  for  the  Encouragement  of  Bee-culture 

[106] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION   IN  HOLLAND 

in  the  Netherlands  has  its  own  teacher,  who  gives  con- 
ferences on  the  subject. 

Various  other  societies  are  doing  similar  work. 

THE  TRAINING  OF  TEACHERS  OF  AGRICULTURE 

Although  part  of  the  teaching  is  done  by  practical 
agriculturists,  horticulturists,  foresters,  and  veterinarians, 
and  some  of  it  by  regular  staff  teachers,  the  greatest  part 
is  done  by  teachers  who  have  special  diplomas  to  teach 
secondary  and  elementary  work  in  agriculture. 

The  secondary  teachers  are  trained  at  Wageningen. 

The  elementary  teachers,  who  already  have  a  teacher's 
certificate,  prepare  for  this  special  work  by  means  of  courses 
under  the  direction  of  the  State  teachers,  with  the  assistance 
of  the  teachers  in  the  winter  schools,  milk  inspectors, 
veterinarians,  professors  in  the  secondary  schools  and 
gymnasia,  and  sometimes  the  head  teachers  who  already 
have  the  diploma  for  agriculture  and  horticulture. 

The  work  continues  for  three  years,  either  through  the 
year,  largely  on  Saturdays,  or  in  summer  only.  The  time 
given  is  two  and  a  half  hours  a  week  —  300  hours  alto- 
gether. 

The  subjects  studied  for  a  diploma  in  agriculture  are: 

1.  Chemistry. 

2.  Elements  of  the  natural  sciences. 

3.  Cultivation  of  plants. 

4.  Breeding. 

5.  Study  of  the  soil  of  the  Netherlands. 

6.  Composition,  working,  and  improvement  of  the  soil. 

7.  Agricultural  machinery. 

8.  Use  of  fertilizers. 

9.  Dairying. 

10.    Methods  of  research  and  experiment. 

The  subjects  for  horticulture  are,  besides  1,  2  and  5: 
study  of  flowers  and  trees,  more  commercial  work,  and 
more  practical  work  in  chemistry  and  horticulture. 

These    courses    are    given    in    alternation    in    different 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


localities,  in  order  to  give  a  chance  to  all  the  teachers  in 
the  country. 

SUMMARY 

The  points  to  be  especially  noted  in  the  Dutch  system 
are: 

1.  The  intimate  connection  between  the  teaching  and 
the  practice  of  agriculture,  which  is  brought  about  by  the 
activities  of  the  State  teachers. 

2.  The  separation  of  the  agricultural  from  the  academic 
system  of  education,  in  that  the  former  is  controlled  by  the 
Department  of  Agriculture,  and  not  by  the  Department  of 
Education. 

This  fact  is  the  more  remarkable,  as  Mynheer  von  Hoek, 
the  Director-General,  was  himself  formerly  an  elementary 
school  teacher. 


108] 


CHAPTER  VII 

AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION  IN 
PRUSSIA 

THE  GERMAN  IDEAL 

ALTHOUGH  Germany  has  increased  in  population 
from  20,000,000  to  64,000,000  during  the  nineteenth 
century,  she  is  now  almost  independent  of  other  coun- 
tries in  regard  to  the  essentials  of  life,  bread  and  meat.  She 
supplies  85  per  cent  of  the  bread  and  95  per  cent  of  the 
meat  consumed  by  her  people,  and  it  is  her  ardent  hope 
and  firm  expectation  that  she  will  soon  be  able  to  supply 
it  all. 

According  to  the  German  ideal,  self-dependence  in  essen- 
tial foodstuffs  is  the  first  stage  in  the  building  of  the  state. 

During  the  past  forty  years  the  continued  prosperity  of 
Germany  has  been  threatened  in  two  directions:  first,  by 
the  tremendously  increasing  pressure  of  her  population, 
and  second,  by  the  development  of  the  industries  at  the 
expense  of  agriculture.  Statistics  have  been  collected  which 
show  that  the  healthiest  element  in  the  nation  consists 
of  the  country  people.  For  instance,  60  per  cent  of  the  farm- 
ers are  physically  fit  for  military  duty  while  the  percentage 
sinks  to  50  per  cent  among  mechanics  and  to  40  per  cent  or 
less  among  the  population  of  large  cities.  It  was  also  found 
that  the  natural  increase  in  population,  that  is,  the  excess 
of  births  over  deaths,  in  the  country  was  18  per  thousand, 
13  per  thousand  in  the  cities,  and  in  Berlin  alone,  only  9 
per  thousand.  Further,  of  1,000  males  who  lived  to  the  age 
of  70  or  more,  280  lived  in  the  country  and  only  189  in  the 
large  cities.  On  the  other  hand,  there  has  been,  with  the 
development  of  nineteenth  century  industrialism,  a  constant 
movement  from  the  country  to  the  city,  until  the  owners 
of  great  landed  estates  in  Prussia  have  had  to  call  in  for- 

[109] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


eigners  as  farm  hands.  It  was  clear  to  the  Germans  that 
two  things  must  be  done  to  check  the  decay  of  the  race  that 
would  inevitably  set  in  if  these  conditions  were  allowed  to 
persist: 

One  thing  was  to  develop  country  life  and  so  foster  the 
growth  of  a  healthy  population.  The  other  was  to  make 
the  soil  feed  this  growing  population. 

That  Germany  has  succeeded  in  these  two  enterprises 
her  resources  now  show  well  enough.  The  immediate  cause 
of  her  success  in  this  direction  is  the  system  of  agricultural 
training  that  has  developed  during  the  past  fifty  years. 

This  system  has  grown  up  as  a  result  of  the  perception 
that  scientific  farming  is  the  only  way  of  getting  the  utmost 
out  of  the  soil  and  still  preserving  it  for  future  generations, 
and  that,  to  produce  a  nation  of  scientific  farmers,  agri- 
cultural education  must  be  at  once  widespread  enough  to 
bring  it  within  the  reach  of  all,  specialized  enough  to  avoid 
overlapping  and  waste  of  effort,  and  thorough  enough  to 
secure  the  application  of  all  the  latest  resources  of  science. 

SURVEY  OF  THE  SYSTEM 

The  following  list  shows  the  number  of  different  kinds 
of  agricultural  schools  in  Prussia,  in  1914: 

A.  Advanced  Schools. 

I.  Department  of  universities 11 

II.  Forestry  schools 2 

III.  Veterinary 2 

B.  Secondary  schools. 

I.  Gardening  schools 3 

II.  Agricultural  schools 18 

C.  Elementary. 
I.  General. 

1.  Farming  schools 10 

2.  Winter  agricultural  schools 229 

II.  Special. 

1.  Meadow  cultivation  schools 6 

2.  Garden,  fruit,  and  wine 16 

3.  Dairy  schools 16 

[110] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION  IN  PRUSSIA 

4.  Courses  for  technical  industries  related  to 

agriculture,    as:     manufacture    of   starch, 
sugar,  vinegar,  brewing,  distilling,  etc .... 

5.  Bee-keeping  schools 4 

6.  Horse-shoeing  schools 72 

7.  Poultry  schools 7 

8.  Forestry  schools  for  apprentices 4 

9.  Special  schools,  including  three  for  fishing . .  9 
III.  Country  housekeeping  schools  for  women 8 

1.  Advanced  schools 9 

2.  Stationary  (schools  and  courses) 50 

3.  Itinerant  courses 250 

Total  (excluding  c.  II.  4) 718 

Besides,  there  are  now  5,349  country  continuation  schools. 

The  number  of  students  enrolled  in  all  these  institutions 
in  1908  was  as  follows: 

A.  Advanced  schools 1,898 

B.  Secondary  schools 4,293 

C.  Elementary  schools 8,284 

D.  Country  Continuation  Schools 55,889 

That  these  numbers  would  be  enormously  increased  in 
1914  is  shown  by  the  fact  that  the  winter  agricultural  schools 
have  grown  during  the  past  five  years  from  184  to  229. 

The  rapid  development  of  the  agricultural  school  system 
within  the  last  forty  years  is  shown  by  the  fact  that  there 
were  in  1875,  aside  from  country  continuation  schools  on 
which  figures  are  not  available,  only  67  agricultural  schools 
over  against  the  718  schools  and  courses  in  1914;  and  that 
the  attendance  in  1880,  aside  from  the  continuation  schools 
which  were  then  purely  general  in  character,  was  only 
3,721,  over  against  the  14,475  of  1908.  Of  the  3,721  pupils, 
only  1,581  were  in  the  elementary  schools  while  of  the 
14,475,  8,284  were  in  these  schools. 

In  other  words,  while  the  number  of  schools  has  multi- 
plied by  more  than  ten  within  the  last  29  years,  and  the 
number  of  pupils  by  four  within  the  last  24  years,  the  ratio 

[in] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


of  attendance  between  the  higher  schools  and  the  elemen- 
tary schools  has  changed  so  that  instead  of  much  less  than 
half  of  the  total  number  in  the  elementary  agricultural 
schools,  now  much  more  than  half  can  be  found  there. 
That  is,  agricultural  education  is  more  and  more  reaching 
the  small-farmer  class;  and  concurrently  with  this,  the 
small  farmers  in  Germany  are  growing  strong  at  the  expense 
of  landowners  on  the  one  hand,  and  of  industrial  workers 
on  the  other. 

In  all  the  other  German  states,  although  equally  detailed 
statistics  are  not  available,  there  seem  to  be  about  237 
agricultural  schools  of  different  sorts,  much  less  than  half 
the  number  in  Prussia  alone,  but  making  the  total  for  all 
Germany  not  far  short  of  a  thousand.  Can  we  conceive 
of  such  a  change  of  attitude  in  our  country,  that,  in  addition 
to  its  present  educational  system,  it  should  possess  15,000 
schools,  about  300  to  a  state,  for  the  special  purpose  of 
teaching  agriculture,  and  especially  the  elements  of  agri- 
culture to  those  who  chiefly  need  such  training — small 
farmers? 

HISTORICAL    OUTLINE    OF    AGRICULTURAL    EDUCATION 
Advanced  Schools 

Until  the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth  century,  such  agri- 
cultural instruction  as  there  was,  was  given  at  the  universities 
and,  as  it  was  intended  merely  to  train  government  officials, 
it  was  of  no  practical  value  whatever  to  the  farmer. 

The  first  courses  were  opened  at  the  University  of  Halle 
about  1700,  in  connection  with  the  subject  of  finance.  In 
1727,  King  Frederick  William  I  established  at  Halle  and  at 
Frankfort-on-Oder,  special  chairs  of  finance,  which  in- 
cluded also  the  departments  of  agriculture  and  technology. 
Although  this  example  was  quickly  followed  until,  in  the 
course  of  the  century,  most  of  the  German  universities  gave 
similar  courses,  no  real  headway  was  made  until  institutions 
for  the  special  study  of  agriculture  were  founded. 

The  first  of  these  was  established  at  Celle,  in  Hanover, 

[112] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION  IN  PRUSSIA 

by  Albert  Thaer,  in  the  year  1802.  His  idea  was  that 
agricultural  schools  should  be  placed  on  farms  where  in- 
vestigation and  experiment  could  be  carried  on.  King 
Frederick  William  III  of  Prussia  was  immediately  interested 
in  the  plan,  and  began  negotiations  with  Thaer,  as  a  result 
of  which  he  settled  in  Prussia  and  founded  an  agricultural 
school  at  Moglin,  in  1807.  This  was  very  largely  supported 
by  the  State,  but  remained  otherwise  a  private  institution, 
and  was  successfully  managed  until  1862,  when  it  gave  way 
before  larger  State  institutions  of  the  same  kind. 

The  first  State  agricultural  school  was  established  in 
1835  in  connection  with  the  University  of  Greifswald. 

One  after  another  institutions  of  this  sort  came  into 
existence  until  in  1861  Justus  von  Liebig  began  an  agitation 
to  have  them  all  made  departments  of  universities.  He 
urged  that  isolated  agricultural  academies  could  not  keep 
up  with  the  advance  of  science,  or,  through  lack  of  means 
and  of  opportunity  for  satisfactory  scientific  stimulus, 
obtain  and  keep  efficient  teachers.  The  result  of  this  move- 
ment was  that  various  universities  added  departments  or 
institutes  while,  on  the  other  hand,  several  independent 
academies  arose  under  the  auspices  of  men  who  opposed  the 
connection  between  agricultural  schools  and  universities. 
The  ground  these  men  took  was  that  if  agricultural  schools 
were  organized  on  the  same  basis  as  other  higher  technical 
institutions,  and  properly  endowed  and  equipped,  they 
would  be  best  fitted  to  give  a  complete  agricultural  training 
within  a  limited  time,  and  that  their  usefulness  had  already 
been  demonstrated  by  the  agriculturalists  and  specialists  who 
had  gone  forth  from  them. 

In  view  of  this  conflict  of  opinion,  the  advanced  schools 
of  agriculture  today  include  institutions  of  both  kinds,  as 
appears  from  the  following  table: 

Founded 

1.  Agricultural  Academy  of  Bonn-Poppelsdorf .       .1847 

2.  Agricultural  Institute  of  Halle  (university) . .        .  1863 

3.  Agricultural  Institute  of  Gottingen  (university) . .  1872 

4.  Agricultural  Institute  of  Kiel  (university) . .  1873 

[113] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


5 .  Agricultural  Institute  of  Konigsberg  (university) .  1 876 

6.  Agricultural  Institute  of  Breslau  (university) ....  1881 

7.  Agricultural  High  School  of  Berlin 1881 

8.  King  William's  Institute  of  Bromberg 1906 

The  1914  volume  of  Mentzel  and  Von  Lengerke's  Land- 

wirtschaftlicher  Hiilfs-  und   Schreib-Kalender  adds 
also: 

Founded 

9.  Seminar  for  Agriculturists  in  Schweidnitz 1911 

10.  Seminar  for  Agriculturists  in  Konigsberg 1912 

11.  •  Institute  for  Practical  Agriculturists  and  Stew- 

ards in  Neuhaldensleben  (date  not  given). 

This  table  shows  that  while  there  was  a  tendency  for 
almost  twenty  years  to  make  agricultural  courses  a  part  of 
university  work,  those  most  recently  established,  like  those 
founded  at  the  beginning  of  the  century,  are  independent 
institutions. 

Elementary  Schools 

The  development  of  the  lower  schools  of  agriculture  pre- 
ceded by  nearly  half  a  century  that  of  the  secondary  schools. 

The  idea  of  elementary  agricultural  education  came  from 
Switzerland,  where  Pestalozzi  and  his  friend  Wehrli  had 
established  for  poor  boys,  especially  orphans,  schools  in 
which  the  free  time  of  the  pupils  was  spent  in  agricultural 
work.  They  were  called  "Agricultural  Schools  for  the 
Poor,"  or  "Wehrli  Schools." 

One  of  the  chief  reformers  of  the  German  agricultural 
system,  Johann  Nepomuk  Schwerz,  saw  the  beneficial 
effects  of  these  schools;  and  when  in  1819,  at  the  command 
of  King  William  of  Wiirttemberg,  he  founded  the  Agricultural 
Academy  at  Hohenheim,  he  added  to  it  an  elementary  agri- 
cultural school  on  the  Wehrli  plan.  This  institution,  like 
those  in  Switzerland,  was  intended  for  poor  orphan  boys  of 
fourteen. 

Other  schools  of  the  same  sort  were  soon  established: 
at  Schleissheim,  in  Bavaria,  1822;  at  Spitzings,  near  Konigs- 
berg, 1832;  at  Lichtenhof,  near  Nuremberg,  1833;  and  at 

in*] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION   IN   PRUSSIA 

Zwatzen,  near  Jena,  1856.     This  last  was  specifically  called  a 
"Wehrli  School." 

Farming  Schools 

As  the  farmers  progressed  in  intelligence  and  prosperity, 
they  began  to  see  the  value  of  education  for  their  sons.  To 
meet  this  demand,  farming  schools  (Ackerbauschulen)  were 
founded  or  reorganized  out  of  Wehrli  schools.  They  were 
situated  on  farms  and  aimed  in  a  two-years'  course  to  teach 
theory  and  practice  together.  The  movement  began  in 
South  Germany,  but  within  twenty  years  it  had  spread  to 
Prussia,  and  in  the  decade  between  1845  and  1855,  half  a 
dozen  such  schools  were  founded  within  the  kingdom.  By 
1876  there  were  25  of  them  in  all  Germany. 

But  the  plan  did  not  work  very  well.  The  farmers,  while 
they  felt  that  their  sons  needed  the  theory  of  agriculture,  also 
held  that  they  could  get  the  necessary  practice  on  the  home 
farm.  Moreover,  they  could  not  easily  do  without  their  sons 
during  the  busy  summer  season. 

Secondary  Agricultural  Schools 

For  these  reasons  the  farming  school  became  unpopular, 
and  a  new  type  of  school  arose  which  aimed  to  teach  only 
the  theory  of  agriculture.  The  first  school  of  this  kind  was 
established  at  Hildesheim,  in  1858,  by  Konrad  Michelsen. 

These  schools  increased  in  number  until  now  there  are 
eighteen  of  them;  but  although  their  official  name  is  still 
"Agricultural  Schools,"  they  have  emphasized  the  theoreti- 
cal side  more  and  more  until  they  have  become  practically 
secondary  scientific  schools.  Thus  the  problem  of  giving 
the  farmer's  son  exactly  the  kind  of  agricultural  training 
that  he  needed  remained  unsolved  until  almost  twenty  years 
past  the  middle  of  the  nineteenth  century. 

Winter  Agricultural  Schools 

The  first  step  towards  its  solution  was  taken  when  in 
1861  the  Agricultural  Association  of  Rhenish  Prussia  decided 
to  appoint  an  itinerant  teacher  for  the  express  purpose  of 

[115] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


giving  expert  advice  to  the  small  farmers  by  whom  that 
district  was  chiefly  populated. 

The  plan  worked  so  well  that  by  1868  five  such  teachers 
had  been  appointed — one  for  each  district  of  the  province. 

The  second  step  was  initiated  in  1863  when  the  Board 
of  Directors  of  this  same  association  hit  upon  the  idea  of 
establishing  "a  winter  agricultural  school,"  in  which  for  five 
months  of  each  year,  November  1  to  April  1,  technical 
instruction  in  agriculture  should  be  combined  with  contin- 
uation school  work.  The  director  of  such  a  school,  it  was 
decided,  should  be  the  itinerant  teacher  for  that  district, 
and  he  should  also  give  the  technical  instruction  in  agri- 
culture in  the  school. 

Here  is  found,  for  the  first  time,  correlation  of  the  advice 
and  practical  help  given  to  adult  farmers  during  the  summer, 
with  theoretical  instruction  to  farmers'  sons  during  the 
winter  months. 

The  principles  governing  this  plan  for  winter  schools 
are  stated  by  Dr.  Oldenburg  of  the  present  Agricultural 
Department  of  Prussia,  as  follows: 

1.  The  agricultural  winter  school  can  fulfill  its  purpose 
only  in  close  connection  with  the  system  of  itinerant  teach- 
ing and  really  forms  a  preparatory  stage  to  this. 

2.  It  is  desirable  to  keep  as  small  as  possible  the  district 
covered  by  the  school  and  itinerant  instruction,  in  order 
that  the  itinerant  teacher  outside  of  his  school  time  may 
have   as   intimate   and   enduring  an   intercourse   with  his 
pupils  as  possible,  may  study  thoroughly  the  agricultural 
situation  of  his  district,  and  come  into  close  connection 
with  the  farmers.     Only  in  this  way  can  he  develop  a  truly 
useful  activity. 

3.  A  satisfactory  solution  of  the  problem  of  the  director 
of  the  winter  school  and  wandering  teacher  makes  it  neces- 
sary that  he  should  possess  a  thorough  practical  and  theo- 
retical training. 

The  agricultural  association  for  Rhenish  Prussia,  for 
its  part,  believes  it  has  met  this  demand  through  its  rules, 
according  to  which  outside  of  a  general  education  corre- 

[116] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION   IN   PRUSSIA 

spending  to  the  position,  at  least  four  years  of  practical 
activity  and  two  years  of  study  in  an  agricultural  high  school 
must  be  required  of  the  director. 

4.  As  successful  activity  on  the  part  of  the  winter 
school  director  and  itinerant  teacher  is  really  conditioned 
by  his  actual  knowledge  of  the  agricultural  situation  and 
character  of  the  inhabitants  of  his  district,  frequent  changes 
in  the  position  of  winter  school  director  must  be  avoided. 

The  plan  conceived  by  the  Rhenish  Association  in  1861 
was  not,  however,  acted  upon  until  1869.  It  happened, 
therefore,  that  two  winter  agricultural  schools  opened  their 
doors,  November  first  of  that  year,  one  at  St.  Wendel  in 
Rhenish  Prussia,  independently,  however,  of  the  Agricul- 
tural Association,  and  one  at  Merseburg,  in  Saxony,  under 
the  auspices  of  the  Agricultural  Association  of  that  district. 

November  1,  1871,  a  second  winter  school  was  opened 
at  Simmern  by  the  Agricultural  Association  of  Rhenish 
Prussia,  and  put  under  the  direction  of  the  itinerant  teacher 
of  that  district,  thus  embodying,  for  the  first  time,  the  full 
conception  of  that  type  of  school. 

By  1876,  when  the  Prussian  government  took  over  the 
school  system,  there  were  eight  winter  schools  in  the  king- 
dom by  the  side  of  25  farming  schools  which  had  had  the 
start  of  them  by  about  forty  years. 

The  most  striking  fact  in  the  history  of  German  agri- 
cultural education  since  1876  is  the  growth  in  numbers  and 
popularity  of  the  winter  agricultural  schools. 

This  is  shown  in  several  ways;  for  example,  by  a  mere 
comparison  of  numbers: 

1876  1914 

Farming  Schools 25  12 

Winter  Agricultural  Schools        8        229 
In  total  attendance,  the  farming  schools  have  increased 
only  two-thirds  again  beyond  what  they  had  in  1876,  while 
the  pupils  at  the  winter  schools  have  been  multiplied  by  44. 
Further,  the  secondary  agricultural  schools  are  begin- 
ning to  add  winter  agricultural  schools  as  departments.     In 
this  connection,  it  is  interesting  to  note  that  a  teacher  in 

1117] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


the  Winter  Agricultural  School  at  Herford  has  recently 
been  appointed  director  of  the  Agricultural  School  at 
Hildesheim,  the  oldest  and  one  of  the  most  successful  of  the 
intermediate  schools  of  this  kind.  As  the  Hildesheim 
school  has  combined  with  it  a  winter  school,  this  appoint- 
ment is,  in  itself,  a  tribute  to  the  success  of  the  winter 
schools. 

Country  Continuation  Schools 

One  more  type  of  school  must  be  mentioned  as  playing 
a  part  in  the  development  of  German  agricultural  education, 
and  that  is  the  country  continuation  school. 

Ever  since  1875,  the  state  of  Prussia  has  taken  upon 
itself  the  partial  or  entire  support  of  such  schools  where 
communities,  districts,  or  private  enterprise  could  not 
undertake  them.  They  were  originally  quite  general  in 
character  until,  after  passing  from  the  control  of  the  Minis- 
ter of  Education  to  that  of  the  Minister  of  Commerce,  they 
came  in  1895  into  the  hands  of  the  Minister  of  Agriculture, 
Domains  and  Forests.  At  that  time  (1896-97)  they  were 
875  in  number,  with  an  attendance  of  13,317. 

The  very  next  year,  however,  attempts  were  made  to 
introduce  technical  instruction  in  agriculture  into  these 
schools.  We  find  969  of  them,  with  an  attendance  of  14,059, 
in  which  the  training  continues  to  be  general,  and  also  six, 
with  an  attendance  of  80,  in  which  agricultural  instruction 
is  given.  In  1898-99  this  number  increased  to  38,  with  an 
attendance  of  606;  but  it  was  quickly  seen  that  young  boys 
with  little  or  no  agricultural  experience  could  not  profit 
much  by  such  teaching.  The  number  of  schools  attempting 
it  was  33  in  1899,  22  in  1900,  and  in  1907  only  8,  with  an 
attendance  of  161. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  country  continuation  schools  on 
a  broader  basis  had  increased  to  3,476  with  an  attendance 
of  50,185.  At  present  (1914)  there  are  5,349  of  them. 
Although  they  do  not  teach  agriculture,  the  instruction  that 
they  give  all  centers  about  country  life,  and  so  prepares  the 
way  for  the  technical  training  of  the  winter  agricultural 
schools. 

[118] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION   IN   PRUSSIA 

DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  DIFFERENT  TYPES  OF  SCHOOLS 
Advanced  Schools 

The  agricultural  institutes  and  departments  in  univer- 
sities do  as  advanced  work  as  is  done  anywhere  in  the  world. 
They  are  much  engaged  in  research;  they  train  the  directors 
and  teachers  of  agriculture,  surveyors  and  specialists  in 
all  departments  of  agriculture,  besides  men  who  intend  to 
go  in  for  scientific  farming. 

While  the  courses  of  study  vary  according  to  the  chosen 
line  of  work,  they  include  all  branches  of  agriculture,  as 
well  as  all  the  sciences  that  bear  upon  them. 

The  entrance  requirements  are  the  same  as  for  any  other 
profession  represented  at  the  university,  but  the  length  of 
the  course  depends  upon  the  line  of  work  chosen;  that  is, 
scientific  farmers  must  remain  at  least  four  semesters  to  get 
a  diploma;  teachers  of  agriculture,  six;  surveyors  and 
agricultural  experts,  four;  but  specialists  in  brewing  and 
distilling,  five,  and  in  sugar-making,  six. 

Forestry  Schools 

Training  in  forestry  dates  back  to  the  time  of  Frederick 
the  Great,  the  first  instruction  being  given  in  1774.  The 
first  forestry  school  was  established  at  Eberswalde  in  1830, 
and  another  was  founded  at  Miinden  in  1868. 

The  entrance  requirements  are  the  same  as  for  a  univer- 
sity, besides  practical  experience  in  forestry  of  at  least  seven 
months.  The  course  lasts  six  semesters,  and  includes 
besides  all  branches  of  forestry  and  the  sciences  related  to 
it,  economics,  law,  and  first  aid  work. 

Veterinary  Schools 

Besides  veterinary  departments  in  connection  with  most 
of  the  universities,  there  are  two  higher  veterinary  schools, 
one  at  Hanover  founded  in  1778,  and  one  in  Berlin  founded 
in  1790.  They  are  on  much  the  same  level,  in  quality  of 
work,  as  the  other  higher  institutions,  and  the  course  of 
study  covers  seven  semesters. 

[119] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


Garden,  Orchard,  Vineyard  Schools 

The  management  of  garden,  orchard,  and  vineyard  is 
taught  at  these  secondary  schools: 

The  Royal  School  of  Horticulture  at  Dahlem, 
The  Royal  Pomological  Institute  at  Proskau, 
The  Royal  Institute  for  the  Management  of  Orchard, 
Vineyard,  and  Garden,  at  Geisenheim. 

Each  of  these  has  its  own  special  province:  the  school 
at  Dahlem  trains  especially  landscape  gardeners;  the  school 
at  Proskau  emphasizes  the  cultivation  of  nuts  and  fruits; 
the  school  at  Geisenheim  trains  younger  pupils  who  have 
had  less  preparation,  and  adds  as  its  specialty  the  manage- 
ment of  the  vineyard  and  wine  cellar. 

Secondary  Agricultural  Schools 

The  eighteen  agricultural  schools  proper,  that  is,  the 
secondary  agricultural  schools,  give  in  a  three-years'  course, 
a  general  training  to  the  sons  of  prosperous  farmers,  to- 
gether with  the  "einjahrigen  Schein,"  that  is,  the  privilege 
of  substituting  one  year  of  military  service  with  the  rank  of 
petty  officer,  for  the  usual  term  and  conditions. 

They  were  planned  originally  to  educate  the  mass  of 
farmers;  but  they  are  all  now  striving  to  become  full-fledged 
secondary  scientific  schools,  as  is  plainly  shown  by  their 
course  of  study,  which  follows: 

1.  Religion,  obligatory  for  the  pupils  not  confirmed; 

with  others,  optional  with  the  parents 1  1  1 

2.  Language  (German  and  one  other  foreign  language, 

English  or  French) 9  9  9 

8.     Geography  and  history 4  4  4 

4.  Mathematics 5  4  4 

5.  Natural  science — 

a    Zoology  and  botany 4  4  2 

b     Physics 222 

c     Chemistry  and  mineralogy 2  4  4 

6.  Agriculture — 

a    Theory  of  plant  production "1  .                .               a 

b     Theory  of  animal  production / 

c     Business  management 4 

7.  Drawing 2              2              2 

8.  Turning  and  singing 3              3              8 

Total 36  37  37 

[120] 


o 

§ 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION   IN  PRUSSIA 

In  1908-09  they  had  an  enrollment  of  4,293  pupils  of  whom 
scarcely  more  than  half,  2,207,  were  taking  agricultural 
courses. 

As  they  have  departed  so  far  from  their  original  aim, 
they  cannot,  even  though  they  are  doing  good  scientific 
work,  be  regarded  as  important  factors  in  the  agricultural 
development  of  Germany. 

Farming  Schools 

The  farming  schools  take  boys  between  fifteen  and  twenty; 
and  aim,  in  a  course  extending  over  a  year  and  a  half  or  two 
years,  to  give  them  practical  as  well  as  theoretical  training. 
The  school  is  always  situated  on  a  farm,  and  the  director 
of  the  school  is  also  manager  of  the  farm,  which  he  some- 
times owns  and  sometimes  rents.  The  pupils  live  in  dor- 
mitories, and  work  the  farm  under  the  guidance  of  the  school 
director.  From  the  necessities  of  the  case,  most  of  the 
theoretical  work  is  done  in  winter  and  most  of  the  practical 
work  in  summer.  The  boys  pay  tuition,  but  the  fact  that 
they  work  on  the  farm  keeps  the  sum  low,  and  there  are 
some  school  scholarships  and  half  scholarships. 

The  farming  schools,  almost  without  exception,  receive 
aid  from  the  State  or  from  corporations,  and  they  are  under 
the  supervision  of  the  Department  of  Agriculture,  Domain, 
and  Forests. 

Winter  Schools  of  Agriculture 

While  the  winter  schools  of  agriculture  are  by  far  the 
most  important  feature  of  agricultural  education  throughout 
all  Germany,  it  is  in  Prussia  that  they  have  been  most  thor- 
oughly studied;  and  conclusions  for  the  229  winter  schools 
of  this  kingdom  hold  also  for  the  other  states  of  Germany. 

The  first  point  of  interest  is  their  relation  to  the  small 
landowner  whose  needs  they  meet  so  perfectly.  They  are 
well  attended  for  several  reasons: 

1.  They  are  open  only  in  winter  when  farm  boys  can 
be  best  spared. 

(1211 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


2.  They  are  so  numerous  that  the  boys  need  not  go  far 
from  home. 

3.  They  are  cheap. 

4.  They  are  in  the  charge  of  an  itinerant  teacher  whose 
advice  is  of  the  greatest  benefit  to  the  small  farmer  in  cases 
where  an  estate  owner  would  hire  the  service  of  an  expert. 

Nearly  all  Prussia  is  divided  into  small  farms.  Only 
1.1  per  cent  of  the  land  is  in  estates  of  more  than  250 
acres;  84.9  per  cent  consists  of  holdings  of  from  1  to  50 
acres.  Only  about  15  per  cent,  consisting  of  farms  between 
50  and  250  acres,  is  owned  by  men  who  send  their  sons  to 
the  higher  and  secondary  agricultural  schools.  For  the 
great  majority,  nearly  nine-tenths,  the  winter  schools  are 
the  only  possible  way  of  getting  a  technical  training  in  agri- 
culture. 

There  can  be  no  question  but  that  in  the  winter  agricul- 
tural school  the  Germans  have  found  the  best  type  of  educa- 
tion for  the  man  of  limited  resources  and  small  means. 

The  plan  is  that  the  country  boy,  after  finishing  the 
elementary  school  course,  shall  be  urged — or,  as  in  many 
places,  compelled — to  attend  a  country  continuation  school 
for  one  or  two  winters  while  he  is  gaining  practical  experience 
in  farm  work,  and  shall  then  attend  a  winter  agricultural 
school  for  two  more  winters,  to  build  upon  the  basis  of  his 
own  experience  a  theoretical  knowledge  of  agriculture  that 
shall,  in  turn,  enable  him  to  understand  and  make  better 
use  of  his  experience. 

In  this  way  theory  and  practice  are  made  to  reenforce 
each  other;  but  they  are  not  taught  at  the  same  time.  The 
attention  is  focused  in  winter  on  theory,  and,  in  summer, 
on  practice,  as  far  as  possible  still  under  the  guidance  of  the 
director  of  the  winter  school,  who,  in  summer,  becomes  the 
itinerant  instructor  for  the  district,  and  keeps  in  touch, 
both  by  writing  and  by  personal  consultation,  with  the 
pupils  in  his  classes. 

The  time  of  instruction  averages  five  months  a  year, 
November  1  to  April  1,  and  about  34  hours  a  week. 

The  attendance  averages  about  38  to  a  school. 

[122J 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION   IN   PRUSSIA 


There  are  two  types  of  winter  schools: 

I.  One-Class  Schools.     In  these,  all  the  pupils  are  in 
the  same  class.     The  work  covers  two  years,   the  same 
group  of  subjects  being  given  alternate  years.     As  either 
half  of  the  course  may  be  taken  first,  there  is  no  difficulty 
about  entering.     This  type  is  especially   suited   to  small 
schools  where  only  one  teacher  is  available. 

II.  Two-Class   Schools.     In   these,   the   work   of   two 
years  is  carried  on  simultaneously  in  two  classes,  one  of 
which  is  more  advanced  than  the  other,  and  two  teachers 
are  required. 

The  courses  of  study  in  the  two  types  of  schools  vary 
only  slightly  in  different  localities.  The  following  arrange- 
ment is  fairly  typical : 


TWO-CLASS 
FIHST  HALF-YEAR 


ONE-CLASS 


Hours 
a  week 
German  and  business  composition . .     8 

Arithmetic 3 

Religion 1 

Physics 2 

Chemistry    (inorganic    as    applied 

to  agriculture) 6 

Geometry,  .surveying,  leveling  and 

drawing 

Law  and  administration 2 

Breeding  and  dairying 8 

Poultry,  fish  and  bee  culture 1 

Total 34 

SECOND  HALF-YEAR 
German  and  business  composition . .     5 

Agricultural  mathematics 3 

Physics  and  meteorology 2 

Chemistry  (organic) 2 

Geometry  (etc.,  as  above) 3 

Agriculture    (working   ground,   fer- 
tilizing, weeding,  etc.) 5 

General     and    special     culture     of 

plants,  fruits,  trees 6 

Breeding  and  care  of  animals 3 

Business  and  economics  (including 

bookkeeping) 5 

Total -   34 

A  tuition  fee  averaging  from  20  to  30  marks  ($5.00  to 
$7.50)  for  the  entire  course,  is  usually  charged;   and  the 

[123] 


Hours  a  week 
1st  yr.     2d  yr. 

Chemistry  (org.  and  inorg.)  4          3 

Physics 2          2 

Breeding  and  care  of  ani- 
mals    0 

General  plant  culture 6 

Special  plant  culture 6 

Business,  economics,  book- 
keeping   0 

Agricultural  mathematics .  0 

Agricultural  law 2 

German  (especially  agricul- 
tural and  forestry  papers) 

and  business  composition  7 

Mathematics 3 

Geometry  (etc.  as  before) .  2 

Religion 1 

At  the  disposal  of  the  di- 
rector... 1 


Total   .  .   S4 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


pupils  must  provide  their  own  board  and  lodging.  As 
these  schools,  however,  are  for  the  most  part  established  in 
small  towns,  this  expense  is  not  very  great. 

The  winter  schools  are  so  distributed  that  each  draws 
upon  its  own  neighborhood  for  pupils,  and  adapts  its  teach- 
ing to  the  needs  of  that  neighborhood,  omitting  all  such 
subjects  as  do  not  come  up  in  practical  problems  in  that 
locality. 

The  director  of  a  winter  school  must  have  passed  the 
final  examinations  of  a  higher  agricultural  school,  or  the 
state  examination  for  that  special  work.  He  himself  teaches 
the  agricultural  and  scientific  subjects,  but  often  gets  out- 
side help  in  the  teaching  of  religion,  the  elementary  school 
subjects,  veterinary  science,  etc.  Usually  local  men,  such 
as  government  officials,  veterinaries,  foreigners,  mechanics, 
clergymen,  and  elementary  schoolteachers  can  be  found  to 
do  this  work  for  a  small  sum. 

The  winter  schools  are  under  the  supervision  of  the  De- 
partment of  Agriculture,  Domains,  and  Forests,  but  although 
they  receive  State  aid,  they  are  not  State  institutions,  being 
founded  and  partially  supported  by  city  corporations, 
chambers  of  commerce,  etc.  The  immediate  supervision  of 
each  school  is  in  the  hands  of  a  special  board  of  trustees. 

SUMMER  ACTIVITIES  OF  ITINERANT  TEACHERS 

Quite  as  important  as  the  work  of  teaching  during  the 
five  months  of  winter,  are  the  duties  performed  by  the 
directors  and  their  assistants  during  the  summer  months 
when  the  schools  are  closed. 

Their  activity  is  many-sided.  They  must,  in  the  first 
place,  stimulate  the  organization  system  of  agricultural 
associations  by  explaining  the  aim  and  work  of  the  De- 
partment of  Agriculture,  Domains,  and  Forests,  and  of  the 
agricultural  corporations  working  with  it.  They  must 
encourage  the  offering  of  prizes  for  agricultural  products, 
cattle,  hogs,  etc.;  they  must  keep  the  herd  books;  they  must 
give  instruction  on  ways  of  protecting  plants,  fighting 
pests,  etc. 

[1241 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION   IN   PRUSSIA 

They  must  continue  to  keep  in  touch  with  their  pupils 
by  correspondence,  and  by  personal  interviews  when  possi- 
ble, to  see  that  the  theoretical  knowledge  gained  the  winter 
before  is  being  properly  applied. 

They  must  also  instruct  the  farmers  of  the  district  who 
have  not  attended  a  winter  school.  This  teaching  must  be 
given  in  a  very  personal  way,  by  advice  in  the  stable,  farm- 
yard, and  field,  as  well  as  at  the  meetings  of  agricultural 
associations.  The  itinerant  teachers  must  also  give  special 
courses  bearing  directly  upon  the  agricultural  needs  of  the 
district. 

The  following  list  of  experiments  which  have  been  carried 
on  in  the  Rhine  Province  since  the  beginning  is  instruc- 
tive: 

Experiments  in  cultivation:  Rye,  849;  fodder  plants, 
149;  wheat,  317;  barley,  839;  oats,  866;  mixture  grains,  23; 
fodder  turnips,  272;  potatoes,  1,281;  garden  vegetables,  32; 
tobacco,  15.  Experiments  in  fertilization  ground :  Rye,  211 ; 
wheat,  52;  barley,  27;  oats,  252;  fodder  turnips,  110;  pota- 
toes, 263;  meadows  and  fields,  450;  fodder  plants,  77; 
vegetables,  64;  wine  and  fruit  culture,  142;  tobacco,  70; 
other  things,  170. 

SPECIAL  ITINERANT  TEACHERS 

Prussia  has  added  to  the  itinerant  teachers  who  are  direc- 
tors of  winter  schools,  a  system  of  itinerant  teachers  who 
are  employed  at  large  throughout  the  year.  They  are  usu- 
ally specialists  in  some  field  of  agriculture.  The  following 
will  show  the  nature  of  this  work:  10  general  agricultural 
experts;  1  specialist  in  small  grains;  21  specialists  in  cattle 
breeding;  2  specialists  in  breeding  hogs;  9  specialists  in  dairy- 
ing; 5  specialists  in  breeding  horses;  3  specialists  in  horse- 
shoeing; 21  specialists  in  fruitraising;  2  specialists  in  fruit 
and  wine  production;  4  specialists  in  wine  production;  1  spe- 
cialist in  raising  flax;  2  specialists  in  organizing  agricultural 
associations;  1  specialist  in  bookkeeping;  8  specialists  in 
raising  poultry.  This  makes  90  in  all,  to  which  should  be 
added  269  specialists  who  teach  in  the  winter  months. 

11251 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


SPECIAL  AGRICULTURAL  SCHOOLS 

The  most  remarkable  fact  about  the  special  schools  is 
that  they  should  exist  at  all  —  that  in  a  tract  of  land 
scarcely  more  than  one-fifteenth  the  size  of  the  United 
States  there  should  be  126  schools  for  special  branches  of 
the  art  of  agriculture. 

Some  of  these  schools  are  very  old,  as,  for  instance,  the 
school  of  horseshoeing  at  Hanover,  which  was  established 
in  1692;  but  most  of  them  have  arisen  during  the  great  period 
of  development  which  began  about  fifty  years  ago. 

The  first  school  for  meadows  was  established  at  Siegen 
in  1843,  and  developed  out  of  an  agricultural  Sunday  school, 
with  a  weekly  course  of  three  hours.  The  instruction  is 
now  given  during  the  week  and  is  graded.  The  work  is 
continued  for  four  or  five  years,  four  hours  a  week,  together 
with  forty  days  of  practical  work  during  the  last  year.  The 
instruction  deals  with  all  problems  of  drainage  and  irriga- 
tion, and  with  the  improvement  of  meadowland  in  general. 

The  oldest  school  for  the  management  of  gardens, 
orchards,  and  vineyards  was  established  at  Koschmin  in 
Posen,  in  1867.  These  schools  vary  widely  in  hours  and 
schedules,  but  show  a  tendency  to  imitate  the  winter  schools 
of  agriculture,  four  of  them  recently  established  being 
planned  in  this  way. 

The  dairy  schools  have  three  purposes:  (1)  to  train 
young  men  and  women  to  manage  or  work  in  large  dairies; 
(2)  to  serve  as  experiment  stations;  (3)  to  serve  as  bureaus 
of  information  on  problems  of  dairy  work.  The  regular 
course  consists  of  from  one  to  two  years,  according  to  the 
preparation  of  the  pupil,  and  there  are  also  short  courses  on 
special  phases  of  the  industry.  The  oldest  dairy  school  is 
that  at  Proskau,  founded  in  1878,  which  admits  women  as 
well  as  men;  and  there  are  also  four  schools,  of  which  the 
oldest  was  established  at  Freystadt  in  1879,  for  women 
only. 

The  schools  for  training  in  special  industries  connected 
with  agriculture,  in  addition  to  training  experts,  have  the 

[126] 


AGRICULTURAL  INSTRUCTION   IN   PRUSSIA 

extremely  practical  aim  of  helping  workmen  already  en- 
gaged in  these  industries.  They  deal  with  brewing,  dis- 
tilling, yeast-making,  sugar-making,  starch-making,  vinegar- 
making,  baking,  the  miller's  trade,  etc.  The  oldest  of  these 
schools  seems  to  be  that  for  distilling,  which  was  opened 
in  1875.  The  courses  vary  from  five  or  six  semesters  for  a 
complete  training  to  a  few  weeks  for  people  who  wish  to 
improve  their  work. 

The  first  school  for  bee-keeping  was  opened  in  1886. 
The  length  of  the  course  depends  upon  the  previous  knowl- 
edge and  the  purpose  of  the  student. 

The  horseshoeing  schools  form  quite  an  elaborate  sys- 
tem by  themselves,  with  a  section  for  blacksmiths  and  one 
for  teachers  of  horseshoeing.  The  shortest  courses  for 
blacksmiths  last  three  months  or  more,  with  theory  and 
practice  together;  for  teachers,  four  months. 

The  first  poultry  school  was  established  as  late  as  1890. 
The  length  of  the  course  varies  from  a  week  to  half  a  year. 

The  schools  to  train  apprentices  for  forestry  work  have 
a  thorough  course  that  lasts  a  year.  They  teach  hunting, 
the  culture  of  fruits,  fish,  and  bees,  gardening,  agriculture, 
and  all  sorts  of  forestry. 

COUNTRY  CONTINUATION  SCHOOLS 

The  country  continuation  schools  really  do  little  more 
than  review  and  fix  the  studies  taught  in  the  elementary 
schools,  always,  however,  with  an  agricultural  bias.  The 
work  is  done  especially  in  winter,  several  evenings  a  week,  or 
on  Sunday  afternoons. 

The  great  increase  in  number  and  attendance  of  these 
schools  during  the  past  decade  shows  the  zeal  of  the  German 
country  people  in  education. 

COURSES  FOR  SOLDIERS 

The  latest  enterprise  in  agricultural  education  is  teach- 
ing soldiers  in  garrison,  which,  at  the  wish  of  those  repre- 
senting the  agricultural  interests  of  the  country,  was  in- 
augurated by  the  Government  in  1908.  The  plans  of  the 

[127] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


military  authorities  seem  to  be  meeting  with   approval; 
but  it  is  still  too  soon  to  judge  of  results. 

SUMMARY 

Out  of  the  bewildering  mass  of  statistics  that  the  Ger- 
mans have  set  down  in  their  books  on  agricultural  educa- 
tion stand  forth  several  conclusions  from  which  there  is  no 
escape : 

(1)  There   is   a   vital   connection   between   the   indis- 
putable fact  of  the  enormous  increase  of  agricultural  pros- 
perity in  Germany,  and  the  agricultural  schools,  which  take 
care  of  the  needs  of  every  class. 

(2)  It   is    German    "system" — that    is    largely    re- 
sponsible for  the  thorough  working  out  and  success  of  these 
schools. 

(3)  It  is  the  elementary  technical  schools,  the  winter 
schools  of  agriculture,  which  more  than  all  the  others  are 
increasing  the  intelligence  and  skill  of  the  small  farmers. 

(4)  It  is  by  educating  the  small  farmers  and  encouraging 
them  to  remain  in  the  country  and  develop  all  the  resources 
of  the  country  that  the  life  of  a  nation  is  maintained  and 
prolonged. 


128] 


CHAPTER  VIII 

SCHOOLS  OF  COUNTRY  HOUSEKEEPING 

GERMANY 

I.    ADVANCED  SCHOOLS 

THE  idea  of  establishing  special  schools  for  teaching 
country  housekeeping  seems  to  have  originated  less 
than  twenty  years  ago.  In  1895,  a  society  was  organ- 
ized in  Hanover  for  the  special  purpose  of  training  women  of 
good  position  in  this  work.  The  plan  was  that  they  should 
study  to  become  not  merely  housewives  and  housekeepers 
in  country  establishments,  but  also  matrons  of  institu- 
tions, managers  of  farms,  and  teachers  of  country  house- 
keeping in  elementary  schools  of  the  same  kind,  which  in 
that  very  year  the  state  was  beginning  to  establish  and 
supervise. 

The  first  school  founded  by  this  society  was  opened  at 
Nieder-Ofleiden,  in  Hesse,  in  1899,  and  was  moved  in  1900 
to  Reifenstein.  In  1901,  a  second  school  was  opened  at 
Obernkirchen,  in  Schaumburg;  in  1905,  a  third  at  Maidburg- 
Mrotschen,  in  Posen;  and  in  1908,  a  fourth  at  Scherpingen, 
in  West  Prussia.  Since  then,  others  have  been  added,  at 
Bad  Weilbach,  at  Mallinckrodthof,  near  Paderborn,  at 
Barwalde  and  Metgethen,  near  Konigsberg,  and  Bad  Lauter- 
berg. 

These  schools  are  all  governed  by  the  society  that 
founded  them;  but  the  course  of  study  must  be  approved  by 
the  Minister  of  Agriculture,  Domains,  and  Forests,  as  well  as 
by  the  Minister  of  Religious,  Educational,  and  Medical 
Affairs. 

Candidates  for  admission  must  be  at  least  eighteen  years 
old,  and  must  have  completed  the  course  of  a  higher  girls' 
school,  or  show  equivalent  training. 

[129] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


The  course  consists  of  two  semesters  of  twenty  weeks 
each,  for  students  who  aim  to  be  housekeepers,  with  a  third 
semester  given  at  Obernkirchen,  Maidburg,  Bad  Weilbach, 
Mallinckrodthof,  and  Barwalde,  for  teachers  of  domestic 
science  in  the  elementery  and  intermediate  schools. 

The  course  of  study  for  the  three  semesters  is  as  follows : 


Subjects 

1st 
Semes- 
ter 

2nd 
Semes- 
ter 

3rd 

Semes- 
ter 

Total 
No.  of 
Hours 

1.     Housekeeping  and  Related  Subjects. 
Cooking                  

10 

10 

10 

600 

Housework,  including  washing  and  iron- 
ine.  . 

6 

3 

180 

Handicraft  

3 

2 

100 

Nature  Study. 
a.     Physics  

1 

1 

b.     Chemistry  .        

1 

1 

2 

160 

c.     Botany  and  nutrition 

1 

1 

Domestic  arithmetic  and  bookkeeping. 
Pedaffogv  .  . 

1 
1 

1 
1 

1 
2 

60 
80 

Practice   in   teaching  and  in   methods 
of  work 

9 

180 

Hygiene 

1 

1 

1 

60 

German  and  civics 

2 

2 

80 

Drawing  

2 

40 

2.     Agricultural  Subjects. 
Poultry-raising  

1 

1 

40 

Dairying,  including  care  of  pigs  . 

1 

1^2 

1 

70 

Gardening,  including  bee-keeping 

1 

V/2 

1 

70 

Total  .  . 

29 

29 

28 

1,720 

Until  1909  this  training  had  to  suffice  also  for  teachers  in 
schools  of  country  housekeeping;  but  in  that  year  a  fourth 
semester  of  training  in  agricultural  subjects  was  opened  to 
them  at  Obernkirchen  and  Maidburg,  and  they  were  given  the 
opportunity  to  take  another  examination  for  a  special  cer- 
tificate as  teacher  of  country  housekeeping.  For  this, 
however,  was  there  required  further  at  least  one  year  of 
experience  in  a  responsible  position  in  a  country  household, 
as  well  as  a  year  of  probation  in  a  school  of  country  house- 
keeping. 

The  course  of  study  for  the  additional  semester  of 
twenty-two  weeks  is  as  follows: 

[130] 


SCHOOLS  OF  COUNTRY   HOUSEKEEPING 


HOURS 

i  WEEK 

Total 

SUBJECTS 

Teaching 

Practical 
Work 

Number 
of  Hours 

Pedagogy  and  method  

2 

At 

Practice  in  teaching  

5 

1  HI 

Poultry-raising  

1 

3 

QO 

Dairying  

2 

2 

M 

Care  of  pigs  

1 

1 

44 

Flower,  fruit,  and  vegetable  culture  .  . 
Bee-keeping  

.5 
1 

7 

264 
22 

Household  arithmetic   and   bookkeep- 
keeping  

2 

44 

Country  social  service  

2 

44 

84 

18 

748 

The  support  of  the  schools  is  almost  equally  shared  by 
the  State,  and  by  individuals,  with  a  little  aid  from  pro- 
vincial societies  and  associations. 

The  attendance  in  four  schools  1908-9  was  as  follows: 

Reif  enstein 40 

Obernkirchen 44 

Maidburg 24 

Scherpingen 16 

The  total  number  who  have  attended  all  the  schools  for 
1  year  or  more,  since  their  foundation,  is  675. 

II.    ELEMENTARY  SCHOOLS 

When  in  1895  the  State  decided  to  establish  elementary 
schools  for  the  special  purpose  of  teaching  country  house- 
keeping, it  was  found  that  there  were  already  sixteen  schools 
in  which  instruction  in  this  subject  was  given.  All  but 
four  of  these,  however,  were  conducted  by  religious  bodies, 
and  the  practical  work  was  entirely  subordinate  to  the 
cultural  and  religious  teaching. 

The  first  step  towards  founding  special  elementary 
schools  for  country  housekeeping  was  taken  by  a  society 
for  schools  of  domestic  science  in  Frankfort-on-the-Main, 
in  1893.  At  that  time  it  was  pointed  out  that  country  girls 
especially  needed  more  training  than  they  could  get  at 

[131] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


home,  in  that  they  went  out  to  service,  and  that  neither  on 
large  estates  nor  in  the  city  could  they  have  the  chance  to 
learn  anything  about  the  kind  of  housekeeping  that  would 
fall  to  their  lot  when  they  returned  home  to  settle. 

The  State  took  up  this  work  in  1895,  both  in  the  way 
of  helping  to  support  such  schools  of  the  kind  as  had  been 
founded  by  religious  bodies  or  provincial  societies,  and  also 
in  establishing  and  helping  to  maintain  other  such  schools 
wherever  they  were  needed.  By  1908-9,  30  additional 
elementary  schools  of  country  housekeeping  had  been 
established  throughout  Prussia,  under  the  control  of  the 
Department  of  Agriculture,  Domains,  and  Forests. 

The  purpose  of  these  schools  is  to  take  country  girls  who 
have  finished  the  work  at  general  elementary  schools  and  at 
country  continuation  schools,  and  give  them  a  sound  train- 
ing, at  once  theoretical  and  practical,  in  all  kinds  of  work 
that  the  country  housekeeper  expects  to  do,  or  may  be 
called  upon  to  do. 

The  age  for  admission  is  usually  between  fourteen  and 
sixteen  with  a  tendency  toward  the  higher  age  limit. 

The  only  requirements,  beyond  the  education  named 
above,  are  good  character,  and  mental  and  physical  capacity 
for  the  work. 

The  length  of  the  course  varies.  In  more  than  half — 
28  schools  out  of  46 — it  is  about  a  year;  in  15  others  it  is 
from  5  to  6  months.  Several  schools  have  3-months' 
courses;  and  2  only  give  an  opportunity  to  continue  the 
work  for  two  years.  Several  have  both  longer  and  shorter 
courses. 

A  typical  course  of  study  is  as  follows: 
A.     Practical  work. 

1.  Cooking,  with  special  reference  to  country  conditions, 

setting  the  table,  serving,  etc. 

2.  Preparing  and  preserving  food,  that  is,  salting  and 

smoking  meat,  making  sausage,  baking  bread, 
canning  vegetables  and  fruits,  butter  and  cheese 
making,  preserving  fruits,  drying  fruits,  making 
fruit  and  berry  cordials. 

[132] 


SCHOOLS  OF  COUNTRY  HOUSEKEEPING 

3.  Washing,  mangling,  and  ironing. 

4.  Women's  handicraft   (mending,   darning,   knitting, 

crocheting,  sewing  by  hand,  sewing  on  the  machine, 
finishing  wash  and  house  dresses). 

5.  Elements  of  domestic  hygiene  and  of  the  care  of 

the  sick. 

6.  Fattening  of  pigs  and  care  of  poultry. 

7.  Care  and  fattening  of  calves. 

8.  Gardening. 

Pupils  who  cannot  milk  are  usually  given  the  chance  to 
learn  properly. 
B.     Theoretical  training. 

1.  Elements  of  dietetics,  food  values,  the  preparation 

and  preservation  of  food. 

2.  Essentials  of  hygiene  and  nursing. 

3.  Milking,  handling,  and  improving  milk. 

4.  Care  and  fattening  of  calves. 

5.  Feeding  and  care  of  pigs. 

6.  Raising  and  care  of  poultry. 

7.  Care  of  the  garden. 

8.  Heating  and  lighting. 

9.  German  (business  composition). 

10.  Mental  arithmetic  and  simple  bookkeeping  for  the 

house  and  dairy. 

11.  Religion,  history,  social  science,  civics. 

12.  Gymnastics  and  music. 

Nearly  all  these  schools  are  residential.  The  fees  for 
a  course  vary  from  25  marks  (about  $6.50)  to  650  marks 
($162.50).  Until  these  can  be  dispensed  with,  only  the 
daughters  of  well-to-do  farmers  are  able  to  take  the  work. 

In  24  of  the  46  schools  in  1908-9,  the  attendance  was 
between  20  and  40;  largest  attendance  was  88;  the  smallest 
9.  The  total  attendance  at  these  schools,  between  the 
opening  of  the  first  institution  of  the  kind  at  Hanover 
in  1868  and  1908-9,  was  17,650.  From  the  figures  avail- 
able, it  would  seem  as  if  less  than  a  thousand  pupils 
received  their  training  before  the  reorganization  of  the 
schools  in  1895. 

[138] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


III.    ITINERANT  SCHOOLS 

These  schools  are  intended  for  the  grown  daughters  of 
poor  farmers  and  country  tradesmen.  They  have  no  fixed 
buildings,  but  move  about  from  place  to  place  in  order  to 
bring  the  training  that  they  offer  within  the  reach  of  all. 

At  the  time  when  "Housekeeping  Schools"  first  appeared 
in  statistical  lists,  in  1894,  there  were  only  two  "flying"  or 
itinerant  courses  in  rural  districts,  both  in  Hesse-Nassau. 

The  first  of  any  importance  seems  to  have  been  estab- 
lished in  the  district  of  Siegen  in  1895,  but  by  1904  only 
four  others  had  come  into  existence.  Between  1904  and 
1908,  however,  the  idea  spread  rapidly,  and  in  1908,  there 
were  44  altogether  listed  in  Prussia.  In  1913,  this  number 
had  increased  to  283,  with  51  in  the  Rhine  Province  alone. 

These  schools  are  supported  almost  exclusively  by  wom- 
en's clubs  and  by  district  associations. 

In  the  Rhine  Province,  where  the  idea  became  most 
popular  because  of  the  preponderance  in  that  district  of 
small  farmers  to  whose  needs  it  was  especially  adapted,  the 
Chamber  of  Agriculture  at  Bonn  has  drawn  up  a  plan  for 
the  establishment  and  government  of  such  schools,  which 
has  done  much  to  secure  a  uniform  system  of  instruction. 

The  teachers  who  conduct  these  courses  are  trained  in 
schools  of  country  housekeeping;  but  for  special  subjects 
the  directors  of  the  nearest  winter  schools,  itinerant  teachers, 
and  local  physicians  are  called  upon. 

The  schools  move  from  place  to  place  within  the  limits  of  a 
fixed  district  (kreis),  and  remain  for  eight  weeks  in  one  place. 

The  minimum  age  limit  is,  as  a  rule,  sixteen  years. 

The  work,  theoretical  and  practical  together,  continues 
for  several  hours  at  a  time,  both  during  the  day  and  in  the 
evening.  During  the  day  the  pupils  are  given  luncheon 
and  coffee  prepared  by  themselves. 

The  course  of  study  is  as  follows: 

1.  Cooking  of  simple  dishes,  baking,  preserving  for 
the  sake  of  economy,  invalid  cookery,  and  manage- 
ment of  the  pantry. 

[134] 


SCHOOLS  OF  COUNTRY  HOUSEKEEPING 

2.  Food  values,  management  and  preservation  of  the 

different  kinds  of  nourishment,  calculation  of  the 
cost  of  the  foods  prepared,  and  practice  in  house- 
keeping books. 

3.  All  kinds  of  cleaning  in  the  household,  setting  the 

table,  serving,  etc. 

4.  Sewing,    mending,    darning,    cutting    out,    washing 

and  ironing. 

5.  Breeding,  care  and  feeding  of  cattle,  dairying,  care 

of  pigs  and  goats,  poultry-raising,  vegetable  and 
flower  growing. 

6.  Hygiene  and  dietetics  and  first  aid  to  the  injured. 
A  very  small  fee  is  charged  for  meals  and  tuition,  usually 

from  about  10  marks  ($2.50)  to  24  marks  ($6.00),  for  the 
entire  course  of  8  weeks. 

This  does  not  cover  the  expenses.  The  community 
furnishes  the  rooms  with  heat  and  light,  and  the  society 
that  supports  the  school  meets  the  deficit  unless  this  is  cov- 
ered by  government  subsidy. 

IRELAND 

Reference  has  been  made  to  the  fact  that  when  the 
Albert  Agricultural  College,  Glasnevin,  and  the  Munster 
Institute,  Cork,  were  handed  over  to  the  Department  in 
1900  by  the  Commissioners  of  National  Education,  alter- 
nate courses  of  instruction  were  being  held  at  both  these 
institutions  for  males  and  females.  It  has  already  been 
shown  how  the  Albert  College  has  been  reorganized,  en- 
larged, equipped,  and  staffed  for  male  students.  The  Mun- 
ster Institute,  Cork,  has  been  similarly  treated  with  a  view 
to  training  girls.  The  demand  for  admission  from  residents 
in  all  parts  of  Ireland  soon  increased,  and  it  was  found 
necessary  to  enlarge  the  premises,  and  at  the  same  time  the 
Institute  was  very  fully  equipped,  so  that  a  complete  course 
of  training  could  be  given  to  young  women  who  were  anxious 
to  qualify  for  employment  under  the  Department  and  under 
the  local  authorities  in  various  schemes  of  instruction  in 
phases  of  country  housekeeping.  Additional  teachers  have 

[1351 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


been  appointed,  and  accommodation  is  now  provided  for 
fifty  pupils.  Some  idea  of  the  demand  for  admission  may  be 
gained  from  the  fact  that  from  fifteen  to  eighteen  months 
must  elapse  between  the  time  that  an  intending  pupil  makes 
her  application  for  admission  and  the  time  when  her  turn 
for  admission  comes  round.  Though  the  school  is  not 
advertised  there  are  on  the  Department's  books  awaiting 
admission  seldom  fewer  than  200  girls. 
The  course  of  training  includes: 

(1)  The  practice  of  dairy  work. 

(2)  The  working  of  a  dairy  farm,  including  the  feeding 
and  management  of  cows  and  pigs,  the  cropping  of  small 
gardens,  and  the  manipulation  of  bees. 

(3)  Poultry-keeping. 

(4)  Household  work,  including  plain  cookery,  needle- 
work, and  laundry  work. 

The  chief  aim  and  object  of  this  course  is  to  so  train 
young  girls  that  when  they  return  to  their  homes  they  may 
make  better  and  more  economical  use  of  the  materials  they 
have  at  hand.  A  more  extended  course  is  given  to  the 
best  pupils  so  that  they  may  become  qualified  to  act  as 
teachers. 

Four  sessions  are  held  annually,  each  of  about  eleven 
weeks'  duration.  The  fee  for  one  session  is  three  guineas, 
a  very  moderate  sum  for  education,  board  and  lodging, 
and  medical  attendance. 

An  examination  is  held  at  the  end  of  each  session.  All 
students  who  attain  the  necessary  standard  at  the  end  of 
the  first  session  may  be  readmitted  to  a  second.  The 
standard  is  such  that  practically  every  student  who  so  de- 
sires may  remain  for  a  second  session.  It  is  considered  that 
the  six  months'  course  of  training  thus  obtained  is  sufficient 
for  the  great  majority  of  students  who,  as  mentioned  above, 
desire  to  return  to  their  homes,  or  for  those  who,  as  happens 
in  some  cases,  desire  to  obtain  situations  in  private  houses 
as  dairy  maids,  etc.  The  examination,  held  at  the  end  of 
the  second  session,  is,  however,  so  designed  as  to  enable 
the  examiners  to  pick  out  those  students  who  are  likely  to 

[136] 


SCHOOLS  OF  COUNTRY  HOUSEKEEPING 

become  capable  teachers  under  the  county  instruction 
schemes.  An  examination  of  a  similar  character  is  held  at 
the  end  of  the  third  session,  and  no  student  is  given  a 
certificate  qualifying  her  to  act  as  a  teacher  unless  she  has 
been  in  residence  in  the  school  for  at  least  four  sessions,  and 
in  most  cases  the  course  is  extended  to  a  fifth,  or  even  a 
sixth,  session. 

A  limited  number  of  free  and  half-free  places  are  awarded 
to  students  who  display  special  merit  at  the  terminal  exam- 
ination of  the  first  session  to  enable  them  to  avail  them- 
selves of  a  second  session  entirely  or  partially  free  of  expense. 
A  few  similar  places  are  also  offered  at  the  end  of  the  second 
session. 

The  staff  of  the  Institute  consists  of: 

(1)  A  superintendent,  who,  in  addition  to  being  respon- 
sible for  the  working  of  the  Institute  and  farm,  also  gives 
instruction  in  general  farm  management. 

(2)  A  matron,  who  in  addition  to  her  duties  as  such, 
gives  instruction  in  laundry  work. 

(3)  A  teacher  of  butter-making  and  dairy  management. 

(4)  A  teacher  of  poultry-keeping. 

(5)  A  teacher  of  cookery  and  needlework. 

(6)  An  experienced  gardener  who  gives  instruction  in 
horticulture  and  bee-keeping. 

A  limited  staff  of  domestic  servants  is  kept,  as  the 
students  themselves  perform  the  routine  work  of  the  In- 
stitute, such  as  general  household  work,  washing  and 
laundrywork,  milking  and  separating,  and  butter-making. 

The  farm  attached  to  the  school  comprises  about  120 
acres.  In  addition  to  the  educational  uses  to  which  it  is 
put,  the  farm  serves  as  a  center  for  the  housing  and  distri- 
bution of  stock,  in  connection  with  the  county  schemes  for 
encouraging  improvement  in  the  breeding  of  cattle,  pigs, 
and  poultry. 

As  in  the  case  of  the  Albert  College,  Glasnevin,  and  the 
three  Agricultural  Stations,  the  Department  have  en- 
larged and  remodelled  the  residential  and  educational 
buildings. 

[187] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


It  is  unnecessary  to  enlarge  on  the  excellence  of  the 
instruction  and  training  given  in  this  Institute;  the  increas- 
ing demand  for  admission,  to  which  reference  has  been  made, 
speaks  for  itself. 

In  view  of  the  great  need  for  this  kind  of  work,  the 
Department  have  established  also  the  Ulster  Dairy  School 
on  a  large  farm  about  three  miles  from  Cookstown,  County 
Tyrone. 

It  is  conducted  on  much  the  same  plan  as  the  Munster 
Institute,  and  also  trains  especially  girls  who  wish  to  become 
dairy  maids  in  creameries.  Candidates  for  this  kind  of  work 
must  have  attended  two  terms,  either  at  the  Ulster  School 
itself,  or  at  some  School  of  Rural  Domestic  Economy.  They 
are  then  admitted  to  a  third  term  at  the  Ulster  School. 
On  completion  of  this  course,  a  limited  number  of  pupils 
are  placed  in  selected  creameries  for  learning  the  practical 
work.  These  receive  a  maintenance  allowance  of  $2.50 
a  week,  besides  free  instruction  at  the  creamery  for  twenty 
weeks. 

The  Department  have  also  provided  courses  for  girls  in 
rural  domestic  economy  at  Portumna,  and  Clifden,  Co. 
Galway;  at  Westport,  Claremorris,  and  Swinford,  Co. 
Mayo;  at  Loughglynn,  Co.  Roscommon,  at  Killeshandra, 
Co.  Cavan,  and  at  Ramsgrange,  Co.  Wexford.  It  is  the 
Department's  wish  that  these  should  be  day  rather  than 
residential  schools,  so  as  to  keep  the  pupil  while  receiving 
instruction  in  close  touch  with  the  life  and  circumstances  of 
her  own  home.  It  is  hoped  that  thus  on  the  one  hand  a  more 
direct  improvement  in  the  home  life  of  the  people  may  fol- 
low from  the  influence  of  the  teaching,  and  on  the  other 
hand  that  the  danger  of  the  girls  becoming  unwilling  to 
live  at  home,  which  so  often  arises  from  the  teaching  of  a 
training  school,  may  be  avoided.  These  schools  are  still 
experimental,  but  should  they  prove  successful  it  is  pro- 
posed to  provide  further  facilities  for  local  instruction  of 
this  nature. 

But  schools  of  rural  domestic  economy  are  not  the  only 
provision  which  the  Department  have  made  for  instruction 

[1381 


SCHOOLS  OF   COUNTRY   HOUSEKEEPING 

to  girls.  Out  of  the  funds  at  their  disposal  the  Agricultural 
Board  annually  vote  a  sum  of  $67,500  to  be  utilized  by  the 
Technical  Instruction  Branch  of  the  Department  in  the 
teaching  of  domestic  economy  by  a  system  of  itinerant 
instruction. 

Further,  the  Department  have  made  very  liberal  pro- 
vision in  cooperation  with  local  authorities  for  the  instruc- 
tion of  girls  in  poultry-keeping  and  dairying. 

DENMARK 

In  democratic  Denmark  the  education  of  country  girls 
in  housekeeping  has  followed  as  a  natural  appendix  to  the 
training  of  country  boys  in  agriculture. 

As  the  people's  high  schools  and  agricultural  schools 
are  in  session  only  from  about  November  until  April  or  May, 
when  most  of  the  pupils  must  return  to  work  on  the  farm, 
Danish  frugality,  within  recent  years,  conceived  the  idea 
of  using  the  same  buildings  and  to  some  extent  the  same 
teachers  in  giving  short  courses  very  similar  to  those  given 
to  the  boys. 

These  are,  however,  viewed  as  preparatory  to  technical 
work  in  country  housekeeping,  which  forms  a  section  of 
the  chief  agricultural  schools,  as  at  Dalum,  Odense,  and 
Kaerhave. 

Most  of  the  courses  for  girls  and  women  are  given  for 
three  months  in  the  summer,  from  May  to  August,  or  five 
months,  May  to  October;  but  at  Kaerhave,  for  example, 
there  is  also  a  winter  course  from  November  through  April, 
corresponding  to  that  in  agriculture  for  men. 

Besides  these  opportunities  for  somewhat  thorough 
instruction,  there  are  short  courses  of  two  weeks,  eleven 
days,  and  even  one  week,  at  different  times  of  the  year, 
planned  to  give  practical  help  in  special  phases  of  country 
housekeeping  to  women  who  have  very  little  time  to  spare. 

The  longer  courses  include  the  following  subjects: 

Hygiene,  gymnastics,  Danish  (reading  and  composition), 
arithmetic,  history  (the  history  of  church,  civilization,  and 
literature,  as  well  as  of  Scandinavian  sociology  and  geog- 

[1391 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


graphy),  singing,  chemistry,  (especially  the  principles  of 
nutrition),  physics  ("every  day  physics"),  housekeeping 
the  (preparation  of  food,  baking,  butchering,  and  all  other 
work  connected  with  cooking,  drying,  preserving  and 
pickling  fruits  and  vegetables,  etc.),  handwork  (sewing, 
knitting,  darning,  mending,  making  patterns,  plain  sew- 
ing, cutting  out,  dressmaking,  embroidery,  etc.),  house- 
keeping (chamber  work,  care  of  fabrics,  washing,  sweeping), 
care  of  the  sick  and  of  children,  home  industries  (brush 
making,  pasteboard  work,  shoe-soling,  and  wicker  work), 
agriculture,  plant  culture,  care  of  domestic  animals,  and 
household  bookkeeping. 

Practical  work  is  given  in  cooking,  handwork,  house- 
work, care  of  domestic  fabrics,  industries,  gardening,  etc. 

This  course  perhaps  is  typical  and  is  noteworthy  on 
account  of  the  addition  of  home  industries  to  the  usual 
subjects  taught  in  connection  with  housekeeping. 

In  the  short  courses  for  women  the  subjects  emphasized 
are:  cooking,  pattern-making,  care  of  the  sick  and  of 
children,  of  the  smaller  domestic  animals,  gardening,  etc., 
subjects  in  which  the  skill  of  the  average  housewife  par- 
ticularly needs  strengthening. 

The  fees  are  very  moderate.  For  instance,  at  Kaerhave 
the  entire  charge  for  the  long  courses  is  24  kronor  a  month 
(about  $6.50),  and  the  short  courses  are  proportionately 
cheap.  But  in  no  case  need  poverty  prove  a  bar  to  the 
ambitious  country  housewife,  as  the  community  in  which 
she  lives  will  pay  the  small  sum  that  will  enable  her  to  in- 
crease her  efficiency  as  a  member  of  society. 

THE  NETHERLANDS 

The  training  of  country  girls  and  women  to  be  mothers 
and  housekeepers  is  only  just  beginning. 

Aside  from  a  private  school  at  Groenlo,  the  first  step 
was  taken  with  the  organization  in  1909,  in  connection  with 
the  winter  school  of  agriculture  at  Veendam,  of  a  two-years' 
summer  course  in  domestic  science.  The  Society  of  Agricul- 
ture and  Industry  of  the  Province  of  Groningen  interested 

[140] 


SCHOOLS  OF  COUNTRY  ^HOUSEKEEPING 

itself  in  the  new  institution  and  in  1910  a  committee  of 
that  body  made  a  report  on  courses  in  country  housekeeping 
abroad  and  the  best  ways  of  organizing  such  instruction 
in  the  Netherlands,  and  especially  in  Groningen. 

The  same  year  courses  were  given  also  in  the  provinces 
of  Zeeland  and  Gelderland,  in  Zeeland  with  special  reference 
to  dairying.  The  Association  for  Encouraging  Agriculture 
in  South  Holland  also  appointed  a  committee  in  1910,  which 
proposed  a  group  of  courses,  A,  B,  and  C,  which  were  tried 
out  in  1911. 

Course  A,  given  in  Alkmaar,  continues  for  five  years; 
B,  for  four  years;  and  C  is  planned  for  two  years  on  the 
same  basis  as  the  winter  courses  in  agriculture  and  horticul- 
ture. Of  the  three  courses,  B  is  felt  to  be  still  on  trial, 
while  A  and  C  are  considered  successful,  especially  the 
latter. 

Since  1910  the  number  of  courses  in  country  housekeep- 
ing has  steadily  increased.  In  1911-12,  for  the  first  time, 
short  winter  courses  were  given  for  the  wives  and  daughters 
(over  eighteen  years  old)  of  working  men.  These  were 
everywhere  well  attended  and  in  some  places  were  extra- 
ordinarily successful. 

There  is  a  school  of  country  housekeeping  at  Lierop,  in 
Brabant,  and  in  several  other  places. 

In  1910  the  Dutch  government  sent  two  country  girls 
who  had  completed  courses  at  different  schools  of  home 
economics,  to  study  the  training  in  country  housekeeping 
given  in  Belgium,  Germany,  and  Denmark. 

In  1913,  as  a  result  of  their  report,  the  De  Rollecate  School 
of  Home  Economics,  at  Dedemsvaart,  in  Overijssel,  was 
founded  to  train  women  as  teachers  of  this  subject. 

The  school  is  situated  in  the  country,  in  order  to  keep 
before  the  pupils  the  characteristic  problems  of  country 
life. 

There  is  provision  for  eight  or  ten  pupils  who,  with  a 
part  of  the  staff,  live  as  a  family.  The  expenditure  for  food 
is  in  the  hands  of  members  of  that  family.  There  is  a  kitch- 
en garden  connected  with  the  school,  and  the  owner  of  the 

[Ul] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


big  farm  "De  Rollecate"  has  put  this  farm  at  the  disposal 
of  the  teachers. 

The  length  of  the  course  is  one  and  one-half  years.  In 
fixing  vacations,  preserving  time  is  taken  into  consideration. 

Candidates  for  admission  must  have  a  "housekeeping" 
diploma  from  a  housekeeping  school,  or  a  certificate  from 
a  competent  person  to  show  that  she  has  knowledge  equiv- 
alent to  this.  She  must  have  also  the  diploma  of  an  ele- 
mentary school,  or  of  a  similar  institution. 

Preference  is  given  to  girls  of  twenty  or  more  who  have 
been  brought  up  in  the  country. 

The  subjects  for  study  are:  cooking,  housekeeping, 
laundry,  food  values,  study  of  foods  and  kitchen  utensils, 
household  economics,  study  of  materials  with  reference  to 
domestic  economy,  theory  of  laundry  work,  physics,  chem- 
istry, botany,  zoology,  gardening,  hygiene,  and  pedagogy, 
theoretical  and  practical. 

All  the  teaching  is  with  immediate  reference  to  rural 
conditions  and  needs. 

The  tuition  fee  for  the  entire  course  is  seventy-five 
florins  ($30.00). 


142] 


CHAPTER    IX 

VOCATIONAL  GUIDANCE   IN  LONDON 

A  FEW  years  ago  the  London  County  Council  made 
an  investigation  of  the  occupations  followed  by  boys 
leaving  school.  This  investigation  showed  that 
about  half  of  these  boys  entered  what  are  commonly  known 
as  blind-alley  jobs,  while  not  more  than  one-third  found 
work  which  could  be  regarded  as  skilled  employment. 
They  are  likely  to  continue  to  do  this,  no  matter  what 
organizations  exist  for  vocational  guidance.  Boys  must  get 
work  of  some  kind,  and  the  number  of  really  good  openings 
is  strictly  limited.  The  problem,  therefore,  is  not  to  deter- 
mine whether  vacancies  of  the  less  satisfactory  kind  shall 
be  filled,  but  whether  all  boys  shall  be  under  some  form  of 
supervision  with  a  view  to  lessening  the  waste  of  human 
beings,  due  to  haphazard  methods  of  securing  employment. 

In  order  to  deal  with  this  problem  an  "Advisory  Com- 
mittee for  Juvenile  Employment"  has  been  organized  to 
work  with  the  juvenile  branch  of  the  labor  exchange  estab- 
lished by  the  Board  of  Trade.  The  problem  of  the  com- 
mittee is  stated  as  follows: 

"Boys  and  girls  leave  school  at  14  years  of  age  or  earlier, 
and  large  numbers  of  them  pass  without  guidance  and  with- 
out special  preparation  into  the  world  of  industry.  They 
are  faced  with  a  variety  of  openings  of  which  some,  though 
immediately  lucrative,  are  not  beneficial,  and  some  are 
permanently  detrimental  to  character  or  to  physique.  It 
occasionally  happens  that  there  is  an  interval  to  be  bridged 
over  by  some  temporary  employment  between  the  age  of 
leaving  school  and  the  age  of  entry  into  a  skilled  trade. 
Even  in  the  cases  where  the  choice  of  employment  is  not 
determined  by  the  pressure  of  need,  parents  have  but  little 
opportunity  of  estimating  the  prospects  of  other  callings 

[143] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


than  their  own;  while  the  facility  with  which  boys  and  girls 
can  in  many  districts  obtain  employment  tends  to  make 
them  careless  of  keeping  a  particular  job  and  indifferent 
to  any  form  of  training  that  might  counteract  the  latent 
disadvantages  of  some  of  the  jobs  which  they  obtain.  The 
readiness  with  which  they  pass  from  one  situation  to  another 
may  make  an  individual  employer  disinclined  to  undertake 
the  initial  cost  of  training  those  who,  when  their  training 
is  completed,  will  seek  higher  wages  elsewhere." 

A  mere  labor  exchange,  where  employer  and  applicant, 
for  work  are  brought  together,  will  not  meet  the  situation. 
The  advisory  committees  should  place  within  the  reach  of 
parents  detailed  information  as  to  the  opportunities  of 
employment;  they  should  warn  them  against  placing  their 
children  in  work  unsuited  to  their  health  or  capacity;  they 
should  call  their  attention  to  the  poor  prospect  which  high, 
immediate  earnings,  coupled  with  lack  of  training,  afford. 
They  may  assist  the  employer  in  getting  into  touch 
with  boys  and  girls  suited  to  their  requirements,  and  may, 
in  a  measure,  check  the  tendency  to  wander  from  job  to 
job,  so  common  among  boys  and  girls,  and  so  fatal  to  the 
ordinary  discipline  of  the  office  and  the  workshop. 

The  London  Juvenile  Advisory  Committee  is  appointed 
by  the  Board  of  Trade  and  Consists  of: 

(1)  Six    persons    nominated   by   the   London   County 
Council. 

(2)  Six  persons  possessing  special  knowledge  of  juve- 
niles and  juvenile  employment. 

(3)  Three  employers. 

(4)  Three  work  people. 

It  is  the  duty  of  this  committee  to  advise  the  Board  of 
Trade  in  regard  to  all  matters  relating  to  the  management  of 
the  juvenile  side  of  the  labor  exchanges,  and  in  particular 
to  form  committees  in  connection  with  each  local  labor 
exchange  and  to  supervise  the  work  of  such  local  committees. 

There  are  eighteen  local  advisory  committees  in  the 
county,  appointed  by  the  London  Advisory  Committee, 
subject  to  the  approval  of  the  Board  of  Trade.  Each 

[144] 


VOCATIONAL  GUIDANCE   IN   LONDON 

committee  consists  of  not  more  than  thirty  persons.  Of 
these  ten  are  nominated  by  the  London  County  Council 
and  two  by  the  "Consultative  Committee  of  London  Head 
Teachers,"  while  there  must  be  not  less  than  four  repre- 
sentatives of  employers  and  four  representatives  of  work 
people.  The  remainder  is  made  up  of  persons  specially 
interested  in  the  welfare  of  youth,  and  includes  teachers 
and  social  workers. 

These  local  committees  endeavor: 

(1)  To  focus  the  existing  scattered  efforts  of  different 
organizations    dealing    with    juvenile    employment   in    the 
locality. 

(2)  To  organize  a  systematic  procedure  for  obtaining, 
in  connection  with  teachers  and  care  committees,  knowledge 
of   the   character,    qualification,   and   home   conditions   of 
children  about  to  leave  school  and  about  to  register  at  the 
labor  exchange  as  applicants  for  employment. 

(3)  To  form  subcommittees  to  attend  at  the  exchanges 
for  the  purpose  of  interviewing  applicants  and  their  parents 
in  order  to: 

a.  Give  advice  with  regard  to  employment  in  general 
and  with  regard  to  partiuclar  vacancies. 

6.  Endeavor  to  secure  attendance  of  boys  and  girls  at 
evening  continuation  or  technical  classes. 

(4)  To  secure  in  cooperation  with  the  labor  exchange 
authorities  that: 

a.  Employers  are  informed  as  to  the  work  of  the  local 
committee. 

6.  Adequate  information  is  obtained  as  to  the  conditions 
and  prospects  of  particular  trades  and  situations. 

c.  The  records  of  all  information  relating  to  children, 
employers,  and  employment  are  so  kept  as  to  be  readily 
available  for  the  purposes  of  the  committee. 

(5)  To  organize,  in  cooperation  with  care  committees, 
boys'  and  girls'  clubs,  and  institutions  for  the  welfare  of 
juveniles,  a  system  for  keeping  in  touch  with  such  boys 
and  girls  as,  when  placed,  may  be  thought  to  need  super- 
vision. 

U45] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


(6)  To  report  periodically  and  make  suggestions  to  the 
London  Advisory  Committee,  and  to  carry  out  such  instruc- 
tions as  may  from  time  to  time  be  issued  to  them. 

Before  the  boy  or  girl  leaves  the  elementary  school,  a 
"school  leaving  form"  is  filled  out,  partly  by  the  head 
teacher  and  partly  by  a  member  of  the  school  care  com- 
mittee, who  is  supposed  to  visit  the  home  and  see  the 
parents  as  well  as  the  child.  This  form  gives  the  child's 
career  in  school,  including  grade,  special  ability,  health, 
home  conditions,  and  a  recommendation  by  the  school  care 
committee  as  to  the  type  of  occupation  the  youth  is  best 
suited  for.  Copies  of  these  forms  are  sent  to  the  local 
labor  exchange. 

Not  all  youth  register  at  the  local  labor  exchange,  and 
at  present  not  all  are  reached  by  the  "school  leaving  forms." 
The  advisory  committee  tries  to  interview  all  youth  who 
register  for  employment.  Both  parents  and  boys  and  girls 
are  invited  to  attend  the  exchange  where  subcommittees  of 
the  committee  meet  them  at  certain  specified  times.  Some- 
times persons  not  members  of  the  committee,  such  as  teachers 
interested  in  the  work,  serve  on  the  subcommittees.  An 
effort  is  made  to  interview  the  child  before  he  leaves  school. 
In  many  cases  he  is  urged  to  remain  in  school.  In  others  a 
suitable  opening  is  suggested. 

In  this  case  the  youth  is  given  a  green  card  to  take  to 
the  employer.  In  cases  where  no  vacancy  exists  the  applica- 
tion is  registered  and  the  youth  is  urged  to  call  again.  In 
the  meantime  the  secretary  tries  to  find  an  opening  by  get- 
ting into  touch  with  local  employers,  by  notifying  neigh- 
boring exchanges,  or  by  sending  the  child's  card  to  a 
"clearing  house,"  for  special  canvassing.  In  some  cases  the 
child  may  be  sent  to  some  special  agency  dealing  with  special 
forms  of  employment,  such  as  the  apprenticeship  and  skilled 
employment  committee.  The  care  committee  of  the  school 
from  which  the  child  comes  is  informed  of  the  action  of  the 
subcommittee. 

The  duties  of  the  committee  extend  to  all  youth  under 
seventeen,  whether  supplied  with  "school  leaving  forms" 

[146] 


VOCATIONAL  GUIDANCE   IN   LONDON 

or  not.  Schemes  for  cooperation  with  other  agencies  con- 
cerned with  the  employment  of  youth  are  arranged,  as  with 
apprenticeship  and  skilled  employment  committees,  the 
Lads'  Employment  Committee,  The  Metropolitan  Associa- 
tion for  Befriending  Young  Servants,  The  Friend  of  the 
Poor,  the  Boys'  Country  Work  Society,  the  Marine  Society, 
the  Society  for  Mentally  and  Physically  Defective  Children, 
the  Boy  Scouts,  boys'  and  girls'  clubs,  etc. 

In  order  to  assist  the  committees,  the  Board  of  Trade 
has  made  investigations  into  the  conditions  and  prospects 
of  certain  occupations.  These  results  have  been  published 
and  are  supplied  to  members  of  the  advisory  committees. 
The  following  reports  are  now  published: 

Ready-made  Women's  Clothing  Trades. 

Bookbinding  and  Stationery  Trades  (girls). 

Steam  Laundries. 

Leather  Working  Industries. 

Building  Trades. 

Trades  for  London  Boys. 

Trades  for  London  Girls. 

The  Board  of  Trade  is  compiling  handbooks  on  various 
trades  for  the  use  of  the  advisory  committees. 

As  none  of  the  areas  covered  by  a  local  labor  exchange 
constitutes  an  industrial  unit,  a  clearing  house  has  been 
established  to  provide  employment  for  youth  who  can- 
not be  provided  for  in  their  own  districts,  and  to 
provide  openings  for  the  youth  best  fitted  to  fill  them, 
no  matter  what  district  they  come  from.  The  committee 
in  charge  of  this  work  consists  in  part  of  persons,  em- 
ployers, and  employees,  alike,  representing  the  large  "city" 
trades  and  businesses,  and  in  part  of  chairmen  of  local 
advisory  committees.  The  clearing  house  deals  with  (a) 
vacancies  coming  to  the  City  Exchange  from  employers, 
and  (6)  vacancies  which  local  exchanges  have  been  unable 
to  fill. 

Vacancies  are  classified  as: 

A.  Vacancies  with  prospects  of  learning  a  skilled  trade 
or  business. 

[147] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


B.  Vacancies  offering  good  prospects  of  permanent  em- 
ployment as  an  adult  in  occupations  not  included  in  A. 

C.  Vacancies  affording  no  special  prospects. 

A  special  effort  is  made  through  local  exchanges  or  the 
"city"  exchange  to  find  appropriate  employment  for  each 
youth. 

The  local  committees  sometimes  refuse  to  send  a  youth 
to  a  particular  employer,  but  must  submit  their  reasons  to 
the  London  Juvenile  Advisory  Committee.  They  may 
also  refuse  to  send  a  youth  to  a  particular  type  of  employ- 
ment. Every  effort  is  made  to  obtain  as  many  good  positions 
as  possible,  and  to  keep  in  close  touch  with  youth  employed 
in  the  less  satisfactory  jobs.  The  committees  can  not  create 
jobs,  but  they  can  assist  in  the  sorting  process,  and  can 
often  secure  improvement  in  the  conditions  of  employ- 
ment by  working  with  employers,  thus  really  increasing  the 
number  of  less  objectionable  jobs. 

The  committees  try  not  only  to  place  juveniles,  but  to 
satisfy  themselves  that  they  have  been  suitably  placed,  and 
to  readjust  things  when  advisable.  The  boy  or  girl  may  be 
suffering  physically,  or  may  need  definite  instruction  in  a 
continuation  school.  The  committee  accordingly  arranges 
that  some  one  shall  keep  in  touch  with  the  child  after  he 
has  a  job.  This  person  visits  the  home  and  ascertains 
whether  the  child  and  his  parents  like  the  job  or  not, 
whether  he  has  continued  in  the  position,  and  learns  as 
much  as  possible  of  the  industrial  progress  of  the  child.  He 
attempts  to  induce  the  boy  or  girl  to  notify  the  committee 
before  giving  up  the  job,  and  he  tries  to  obtain  reports  from 
the  employers  as  to  the  child's  progress. 

The  local  committees  cooperate  with  medical  officers, 
secondary  schools,  evening  schools  and  technical  institutes, 
and  clubs  for  juveniles.  In  this  way  they  prevent  an  im- 
mense amount  of  social  waste,  and  enable  society  to  protect 
itself  in  a  measure  against  some  of  the  evils  of  our  present 
urban  life. 


148] 


CHAPTER  X 

WELFARE  OF  WORKING  YOUTH  IN 
GERMANY 

THE  most  significant  movement  in  the  German  educa- 
tional world  today  is  the  one  concerned  with  the  care 
of  youth  between  fourteen  and  twenty,  who  have 
left  the  schools  to  go  to  work.  Much  has  already  been 
done  by  private  initiative  to  care  for  the  bodily,  spiritual, 
economic,  social,  and  civic  needs  of  such  youth.  The  new 
and  important  thing  is  the  thorough  and  systematic  promo- 
tion of  these  private  efforts  by  the  different  German  states. 
These  states  attempt  to  guide,  encourage,  and  supplement 
the  work  of  private  organizations  by  furnishing  sums  of 
money  and  by  training  persons  for  leadership,  as  well  as 
by  discouraging  dilettanteism  and  the  exploitation  of  these 
youth  for  personal,  political,  or  sectarian  ends. 

The  obligation  of  the  adult  toward  the  growing  child 
originally  extended  only  to  bodily  care — food,  clothing, 
shelter.  This  was  soon  extended  to  care  of  the  spiritual  life, 
and  acquired  the  character  of  education.  While  at  first 
this  education  devoted  itself  to  the  welfare  of  the  individual, 
the  modern  organization  of  society  compels  us  to  educate 
the  child  as  a  member  of  the  race,  as  a  citizen  of  the  common- 
wealth. The  family,  the  church,  associations  of  all  kinds, 
and  finally  the  state  have  come  to  undertake  this  work. 

It  is  estimated  that  in  Germany  eighty  per  cent  of  the 
boys  and  over  forty  per  cent  of  the  girls  leave  the  schools  at 
fourteen  to  begin  life  as  bread  winners.  When  the  parental 
home  neglects  to  protect  them,  and  when  the  master  regards 
them  as  only  cheap  labor,  great  dangers  threaten  these 
young  people  and  make  imperative  special  legislation  for 
their  protection.  So  far  as  work  is  concerned,  young  people 
are  treated  like  adults  far  too  early,  and  the  youth  them- 

[1491 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


selves  approve  of  this  false  judgment  and  overestimate 
their  growing  powers.  It  must  be  clear  to  every  judicious 
man  that  he  cannot  safely  make  as  great  physical  demands 
upon  the  undeveloped  youth  as  upon  the  fully  developed 
man.  Still  modern  systems  of  division  of  labor  and  labor  time 
make  little  or  no  difference  between  them.  The  organiza- 
tion of  modern  system  of  work,  in  connection  with  the  bad 
air  of  the  workshop,  factory  and  office,  and  the  insufficient 
nourishment  due  to  ignorance  or  lack  of  means,  produce 
defects  and  deformities  that  hinder  a  complete  building 
up  of  the  more  important  physical  organs;  and  the  body, 
with  its  power  of  resistance  thus  weakened,  is  readily 
attacked  by  disease. 

The  special  portion  of  this  work  devoted  to  the  youth 
between  fourteen  and  twenty-one  is  called  by  the  Germans 
"  Jugendpflege"  and  includes  not  only  the  educational  work 
of  the  continuation  schools,  but  the  associated  welfare 
movements  for  the  physical,  spiritual,  economic,  and  civic 
instruction  and  protection  of  youth.  These  welfare  move- 
ments include  provision  for  hygienic  instruction,  physical 
exercise,  play  of  all  sorts,  sports,  public  playgrounds,  swim- 
ming baths,  etc.  They  also  include  spiritual  dare  and 
instruction  provided  by  lectures,  special  libraries,  evening 
entertainments,  music,  reading  and  amusement  rooms. 
Economic  and  social  interests  are  also  promoted  by  voca- 
tional schools,  savings  banks,  vocational  guidance,  train- 
ing for  citizenship,  the  organization  of  patrotic  boys'  clubs, 
etc.  As  was  suggested  above,  the  significant  thing  in  this 
movement  at  present  is  its  reorganization  and  combination 
with  compulsory  vocational  education  for  youth  between 
fourteen  and  eighteen,  the  vocational  continuation  school 
being  regarded  as  the  logical  center  of  the  whole  movement. 

In  1911,  Prussia  appropriated  one  million  marks  for  the 
promotion  of  this  supplementary  welfare  work,  one  and 
one-half  million  marks  in  1912,  two  and  one-half  million 
marks  in  1913.  Under  the  law  controlling  the  expenditure 
of  these  sums,  committees  are  being  organized  throughout 
the  kingdom  to  induce  private  organizations  to  cooperate 

[150] 


WELFARE   OF   WORKING   YOUTH   IN   GERMANY 

in  this  work,  to  supply  these  with  money  and  necessary 
information,  and  to  induce  backward  communities  to  make 
a  beginning  in  this  direction.  It  is  estimated  that  at  present 
about  twenty  per  cent  of  the  boys  and  girls  between  four- 
teen and  eighteen  are  being  reached  through  the  cooperation 
of  private  and  public  organizations  grouped  about  the 
vocational  continuation  schools. 

The  absolute  necessity  of  this  welfare  work  in  connection 
with  the  vocational  schools  is  shown  in  a  booklet  recom- 
mended to  me  by  the  member  of  the  Prussian  Ministry  in 
charge  of  the  continuation  schools. 

The  character  of  youth  between  fourteen  and  twenty- 
one  years  of  age  demands  this  care.  While  man  changes 
and  develops  throughout  his  entire  life,  the  years  between 
fourteen  and  twenty-one  are  a  time  of  accelerated  growth 
and  development.  The  youth  grows  rapidly  in  height  and 
weight;  the  volume  of  the  heart  and  lungs  almost  doubles; 
he  enters  the  period  of  adolescence;  he  is  awkward,  critical, 
and  independent,  and  often  throws  overboard  most  of  the 
ideals  of  the  home,  the  church,  and  the  school.  He  seeks 
satisfaction  in  new  things  and  develops  a  new  view  of  the 
world.  It  is  apparent  that  he  needs  special  guidance  and 
protection  during  this  period,  guidance  which  the  family, 
the  church,  and  the  school,  especially  in  our  great  cities, 
cannot  give. 

(1)  The  modern  family,  especially  in  the  cities,  cannot 
do  this  work.  Family  life  has  degenerated  in  our  great 
cities.  Miserable  housing,  dislike  for  work,  desire  for  pleas- 
ure, alcoholism,  prostitution,  all  these  are  factors  which 
have  changed  the  character  of  the  home  there.  In  the  year 
1900  there  were  in  Berlin  431  persons  in  every  thousand 
living  in  homes  with  but  one  room  that  could  be  heated. 
These  homes  had  only  the  most  indispensable  articles  of 
furniture — not  a  trace  of  decoration  or  ornament;  they  pro- 
vided only  a  covering  from  the  weather  and  a  place  to  sleep. 
Life  under  such  home  conditions  is  only  a  weary  change 
from  the  workshop  to  the  lodging  house,  except  for  the 
attractions  of  the  street  and  the  beer  hall. 

(1511 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


(2)  The  school  alone  cannot  do  much  to  better  these 
conditions.     It  can  communicate  knowledge,  enforce  order; 
but  the  inner  transformation  of  the  child's  nature  comes 
through  personal  contact  with  the  teacher.     An  enduring 
bond  between  the  teacher  and  the  pupil  is  almost  impossible 
in  the  ordinary  life  of  some  portions  of  our  great  cities. 
Besides,  the  classes  are  generally  so  large  that  the  individual 
child  seldom  comes  into  intimate  personal  relations  with 
his  teacher.    I  should  be  glad  to  believe  that  the  situation 
was  better  in  the  smaller  cities  and  in  the  country,  but 
statistics  show  that  the  average  number  in  a  school  room  in 
Prussia  is  over  fifty,  and  in  one  village  I  visited  in  1914 
seven   teachers   were  caring  for  five  hundred  pupils,  one 
teacher  having  eighty-five. 

(3)  The    church    is   also   unable   to   meet   the   whole 
situation.    Many  families  in  the  cities  never  attend  church. 
The  enormous  growth  of  materialism  among  the  working 
classes  shows  the  inability  of  the  church  alone  to  grapple 
with  this  problem.     It  is  also  true  that  many  of  the  activ- 
ities grouped  under  the  head  of  "Welfare  of  Youth"  are 
outside  the  scope  of  what  most  church  people  regard  as  their 
usual  duties.    It  seems  clear,  therefore,  that  it  is  not  enough 
for  the  State  to  protect  the  youth  against  too  long  hours  of 
labor  and   unsuitable  employment,   and   then   leave  their 
further  care  and  protection  to  the  factory  and  the  street. 
Under  such  conditions  the  youth  becomes  a  sacrifice  to 
economic  demands  and  to  low  pleasures,  and  is  finally  the 
tool  of  unscrupulous  politicians. 

There  are  4,500,000  youthful  workers  in  Prussia.  Of 
these,  about  900,000  boys  and  700,000  girls  are  between 
fourteen  and  sixteen.  Of  the  1,200,000  boys  between  six- 
teen and  eighteen,  eighty-six  per  cent  are  at  work.  Of  the 
1,200,000  girls  of  the  same  age,  about  seventy-two  per  cent 
are  at  work.  The  influence  of  the  family  in  such  cases  is 
necessarily  weakened.  Perhaps  half  of  these  young  men 
are  apprenticed,  although  at  the  present  time  it  is  estimated 
that  not  more  than  three-fifths  of  the  apprentices  live  in  the 
homes  of  their  masters.  Even  here  the  old  traditions  have 

[1552] 


WELFARE  OF  WORKING   YOUTH   IN   GERMANY 

vanished,  and  the  interest  of  the  master  has  become  essen- 
tially economic,  not  a  personal  interest  in  the  care  and  educa- 
tion of  the  apprentice.  In  those  cases  where  the  boy  still 
lives  with  his  parents,  his  sharing  in  the  support  of  the  home 
has  made  him  somewhat  independent  of  parental  control. 

The  statistics  of  Germany  show  a  considerable  increase 
in  youthful  crime,  brought  about  largely  by  the  conditions 
mentioned  above.  During  the  years  from  1882  to  1896, 
crime  among  adults  increased  4.6  per  cent;  crime  among 
young  people,  16 . 7  per  cent.  Such  crimes  as  stealing,  arson, 
assault,  increased  37  per  cent  among  the  youth  during  the 
years  from  1897  to  1902.  Assault  resulting  in  bodily  injury 
increased  about  130  per  cent  during  the  years  from  1882 
to  1901.  Although  part  of  this  apparent  increase  means 
only  increased  severity  in  punishment,  much  remains  which 
cannot  be  explained  in  this  way. 

The  economic  effect  of  this  situation  must  also  be  con- 
sidered. The  young  man  who  develops  under  favorable 
conditions  becomes  a  very  different  laborer  from  the  one 
who  through  one-sided  demands  upon  his  bodily  powers, 
through  too  strenuous  labor,  through  unregulated,  un- 
hygienic conduct  of  life,  through  use  of  alcohol,  or  premature 
and  excessive  use  of  tobacco,  or  sexual  excesses,  becomes 
stunted  in  bodily  development  and  loses  his  health.  The 
economic  loss  of  national  capital,  due  to  neglect  of  the 
youth,  may  be  seen  from  the  following  statistics: 

Professor  Biedert  of  Strassburg  estimates  the  cost  of 
rearing  a  child  to  the  age  of  fourteen  (when  the  child  of  the 
unskilled  laborer  goes  to  work),  under  the  poorest  working- 
class  conditions,  at  about  $700.00,  while  it  cost  $1,200.00 
to  rear  a  child  in  the  better  class  to  the  age  of  seventeen. 
If  this  youth  dies  without  taking  part  in  the  national  labor, 
his  death  is  a  loss  of  national  capital.  Herr  Potthof,  a 
professional  writer  in  this  field,  estimates  that  it  costs  the 
family,  the  community,  and  the  State  $1,750.00  to  care  for 
and  educate  a  child  up  to  the  age  of  fifteen.  He  estimates, 
too,  that  the  yearly  loss  to  the  German  Empire  from  infant 
mortality  alone  is  $25,000,000  (in  1909  there  were  335.436 

[153] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


such  deaths — each  a  loss  of  $75);  the  loss  due  to  the  death 
of  children  before  reaching  the  age  of  five  years  (over  100,- 
000  in  1909)  at  $32,500,000;  the  loss  due  to  the  death  of  the 
40,000  school  children  before  completing  their  fifteenth  year 
at  $35,000,000— a  total  of  $92,500,000  per  year. 

But  this  is  not  the  whole  story.  The  State  loses  not 
only  the  money  spent  in  rearing  and  educating  the  500,000 
children  but  also  the  value  of  their  lifelong  working  power. 
Dr.  Keitlin  has  estimated  that  the  working  power  of  the 
average  man  represents  a  national  capital  of  $4,000.  To 
the  $92,500,000  expended  for  the  rearing  of  the  500,000 
children  must  be  added  a  deficit  in  the  productive  power  of 
the  people  of  five  hundred  thousand  times  four  thousand, 
amounting  to  $2,000,000,000,  which  is  involved  in  the  pre- 
mature death  of  children  before  the  age  of  fourteen. 

Nor  is  this  the  whole  story:  There  is  a  tremendous  loss 
of  capital  based  on  loss  of  power  for  bodily  work,  due  to 
frequent  cases  of  illness  of  the  youth  in  industrial  life,  as 
well  as  to  premature  old-age  disability.  These  losses,  under 
the  scientific  insurance  scheme  of  Germany,  fall  in  varying 
proportions  on  the  individual  workman,  on  the  employer, 
and  on  the  State.  In  the  case  of  accidents  (which  it  is  be- 
yond the  power  of  the  individual  workman  to  prevent), 
the  employee  contributes  nothing  to  the  indemnity  fund; 
the  employers  pay  all.  In  the  case  of  sickness,  which  is  to 
some  extent  within  the  power  of  the  individual  to  prevent 
or  lessen,  the  workmen  pay  two-thirds,  the  employers  one- 
third.  In  old  age  and  invalidity  insurance  the  workmen 
and  the  employers  pay  equally,  and  the  State  contributes 
about  $12.50  annually  to  each  annuitant.  The  general 
acceptance  of  these  compulsory  insurance  plans  would  seem 
to  make  it  proper  to  discuss  the  matter  of  disability  losses 
from  the  economic  point  of  view,  as  expressed  in  dollars  and 
cents,  not  forgetting  that  the  waste  of  human  life  and  power 
means  a  deeper  loss  to  the  State  than  can  ever  be  expressed 
in  any  financial  terms.  In  this  case,  however,  economic 
advantage  and  brotherly  love  seem  to  point  in  the  same 
direction. 

[154] 


Let  us  leave  out  of  sight  for  a  moment  this  last  considera- 
tion. The  bare  figures  are  appalling.  For  the  entire  num- 
ber of  male  persons  between  fifteen  and  nineteen  years  of 
age,  insured  under  the  workmen's  sick  fund  of  Leipsic,  there 
were,  for  a  definite  period  studied,  6.2  days  of  illness  per 
member  per  year;  for  the  metal  workers,  8. 1  days  per  year, 
and  for  youth  in  offices,  shops,  and  stores,  4.1.  If  it  were 
possible  to  reduce  the  frequency  of  days  of  sickness  of 
youthful  metal  workers  to  the  frequency  of  those  employed 
in  offices,  shops,  and  stores,  the  saving  in  expense  to  the 
sick  fund  for  the  Empire  would  be  over  $15,000,000  per 
year.  This  would  mean  to  the  group  of  metal  workers 
alone  a  reduction  in  their  insurance  fees  of  almost  $500,000 
per  year.  Dr.  Kaup  estimates  the  gain  to  the  female  workers 
of  this  age  at  $350,000  if  they  could  succeed  in  reducing  the 
number  of  days  of  sickness  per  year  (averaging  7.5)  to  the 
number  of  days  of  sickness  of  female  workers  in  offices  and 
shops,  6.1.  Further,  the  loss  of  wages  due  to  sickness, 
brought  about  by  overexertion  and  other  unhygienic  life 
conditions  in  the  vocations,  according  to  Kaup,  could  be 
reduced  every  year  about  $875,000  for  the  entire  number  of 
male  workers  and  $437,500  for  the  female  workers,  if  we 
allow  only  4 . 1  days  of  illness  per  year  for  the  male  and  6 . 1 
for  the  female.  In  this  way  the  amount  expended  for  sick 
benefits  for  the  entire  Empire  would  be  reduced  $17,750,000 
every  year  for  the  male  workers  and  $4,000,000  for  the 
female  workers.  If  we  could  only  succeed  in  reducing  the 
frequency  of  sickness  for  the  entire  number  of  members  of 
the  sick  fund  one  day  per  year,  a  loss  of  wages  of  $19,500,- 
000  per  year  would  be  avoided,  and  at  the  same  time  a  re- 
duction in  the  sum  expended  for  sick  fund  fees  of  almost 
$3,750,000,  while  the  sick  fund  itself  would  be  saved  over 
$7,750,000.  There  is  still  one  more  item  in  the  account  to 
be  considered,  the  loss  in  working  power  due  to  premature 
invalidism,  brought  about  by  unhygienic  conduct  of  life  in 
youth,  amounting  to  millions  of  marks  a  year.  No  wonder 
the  German  writers  consider  it  a  holy  duty  for  the  State 
authorities  to  conserve  the  working  power  of  the  people 

[155] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


as  long  as  possible  and  to  postpone  their  lapse  into  disability 
by  attention  to  the  welfare  of  the  youth. 

The  percentage  of  sickness  among  the  male  youth  in 
many  of  the  trades  is  much  higher  than  among  the  older 
workers,  up  to  the  age  of  thirty-nine.  Sickness  among 
women  workers  seems  to  increase  with  age,  according  to 
the  same  statistics,  in  all  the  groups,  while  in  certain  in- 
dustries the  terribly  high  figures  show  the  devastating 
effect  of  vocational  activity  upon  the  health.  In  three 
particular  industries — textile,  garment-making,  commercial 
employment — out  of  every  one  hundred  youthful  female 
members  of  the  sick  fund  there  are  3 . 2,  7 . 2, 6 . 9,  respectively, 
more  cases  of  illness  than  among  the  male  workers.  The 
number  of  deaths  from  tuberculosis  increases  rapidly  in 
the  great  cities  among  girls  between  fifteen  and  twenty 
years  of  age. 

The  number  of  girl  workers  is  very  great  in  Germany. 
According  to  the  imperial  statistics  for  1910,  out  of  one  and 
one-half  million  women  workers  489,130  are  girls  between 
sixteen  and  twenty  years  of  age,  and  of  these  145,715  are 
employed  in  the  dangerous  textile  industries  alone.  These 
figures  are  constantly  increasing.  The  group  of  the  youngest 
employees,  those  between  fourteen  and  sixteen,  increases 
in  a  striking  manner.  In  the  commercial  trades  there  are 
in  addition  to  125,000  men,  according  to  the  last  census, 
76,000  girls  at  work.  A  German  writer  says,  "he  who  re- 
members that  over  40  per  cent  of  the  entire  female  youth 
are  employed  in  earning  a  living,  and  he  who  has  seen  the 
human  material  that  streams  every  evening  out  of  the  doors 
of  the  factories  and  shops,  comprehends  us  when  we  speak 
of  the  exhaustion  of  our  rising  generation." 

We  must  too  consider  the  importance  of  health  to  the 
mother  of  the  coming  race.  Everywhere  people  speak 
about  the  protection  of  the  mother  and  the  infant,  but 
trouble  themselves  very  little  about  the  young  girl.  It  is 
evident  that  anaemic,  exhausted  girls  can  never  be  the 
mothers  of  vigorous  children.  The  dangers  are  also  in- 
creased by  the  exacting  vocational  activities,  which  will 

[1561 


WELFARE  OF   WORKING   YOUTH   IN   GERMANY 

never  permit  a  happy  family  life  with  healthy,  joyous  chil- 
dren, and  which  prevent  the  acquisition  of  the  sound  knowl- 
edge of  household  economics  necessary  to  a  wholesome 
family  life.  It  is  apparent  when  one  takes  into  consideration 
the  injurious  effects  of  factory  work  upon  the  young 
girl  who  is  without  proper  care,  that  we  must  be  at  least 
as  vigilant  in  her  behalf  as  for  the  protection  of  the  boy. 

The  economic  success  of  Germany  in  the  markets  of  the 
world,  of  course,  depends  largely  upon  the  training  of  her 
youth.  Her  political  progress  is  dependent  upon  her  ability 
to  train  youth  in  the  civic  virtues,  while  her  military  strength 
requires  systematic  attention  to  both  the  physical  and  spirit- 
ual power  of  the  people.  Jugendpflege,  therefore,  is  both  an 
economic  and  a  military  necessity.  Germany's  ideal  for  its 
youth  has  been  expressed  as  "the  production  of  happy, 
physically  efficient  and  morally  sound  men,  filled  with  public 
spirit,  the  fear  of  God,  and  love  of  home  and  Fatherland." 

The  German  feels  that  the  more  the  economic  life  of  the 
country  develops,  the  greater  are  dangers  of  disaster  and  ship- 
wreck to  its  youth,  and  the  more  necessary  are  organizations 
to  rescue  them.  With  an  increasing  culture,  there  must  be  a 
stronger  public  spirit  and  feeling  of  responsibility  for  t  he  youth . 
The  public  must  recognize  that  spiritual  distress  is  often  the 
result  of  physical  and  material  misery.  The  perception  of 
this  and  the  common  feeling  of  responsibility  for  it  are  the 
most  hopeful  signs  of  the  present  age.  In  addition  to  this, 
the  Germans  feel  that  neglect  of  these  youth  constitutes  a 
danger  to  their  national  existence.  They  are  not  willing 
that  the  problem  should  be  left  to  the  dilettante,  but  insist 
that  it  must  be  taken  up  by  well-trained,  practical  workers, 
responsible  to  the  whole  community. 

Up  to  1911  this  welfare  work  was  cared  for  by  private 
initiative.  The  churches,  Roman  Catholic,  Evangelical, 
and  Jewish,  organized  associations  of  youth  for  sport,  rec- 
reation, and  spiritual  advancement,  non-religious  bodies  of 
all  sorts,  such  as  the  turners,  the  trade  unions,  and  a  large 
number  of  charitable  associations  interested  themselves  in 
the  movement.  The  statistics  of  the  Catholic  Church  in 

1157] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


Germany  show  2,656  associations  of  youth,  with  257,465 
members.  The  figures  for  the  Evangelical  Church  give 
2,419  associations,  with  142,826  members,  with  233  profes- 
sional workers,  and  172  homes.  The  Jewish  organizations 
include  80  unions,  with  14,000  members.  The  social  demo- 
crats report  227  organizations,  with  153,616  members. 
These  organizations  usually  provide  reading-rooms,  libra- 
ries, exercise  grounds,  lectures,  etc.,  for  the  youth. 

Since  1911  Prussia  and  other  German  states  have  under- 
taken to  guide  and  stimulate  this  work  throughout  the  entire 
country.  They  encourage  the  organization  of  local  asso- 
ciations, then  a  combination  of  these  into  larger  groups, 
including  finally  the  whole  country.  Experience  has 
shown  that  united  effort  is  necessary  to  success.  The 
Olympic  games  have  contributed  to  bring  about  this  feeling. 
There  has  grown  up  gradually  a  belief  that  a  harmonious 
care  of  the  body  must  be  combined  with  corresponding 
spiritual  culture  if  real  success  is  to  be  attained.  In  carry- 
ing out  the  law  of  1911  the  Prussian  government  under- 
took to  group  all  the  private  agencies  for  youthful  welfare 
about  the  work  of  the  continuation  schools.  With  the 
scheme  of  compulsory  continuation  schools  came  the 
opportunity  for  reaching  all  the  youth.  The  work  of  the 
voluntary  organizations  could  be  guided  and  assisted  into 
the  right  channels,  competition  between  them  could  be 
avoided,  and  the  work  of  dilettanti  and  self-seekers  could  be 
discouraged.  There  is  a  general  disposition  in  Germany  at 
the  present  time  for  all  sorts  of  organizations,  religious  or 
otherwise,  to  support  a  national  system  of  welfare  work 
which  will  not  displace  private  effort,  but  will  supplement, 
assist,  and  direct  it.  This  work,  as  has  been  stated,  is 
grouped  about  the  continuation  schools  and  is  assisted  by 
them.  In  return  it  contributes  greatly  to  the  efficiency  of 
the  work  of  these  institutions  and  prevents  their  lapsing 
into  mere  machines  for  securing  mechanical  skill. 

In  1908  Dr.  von  Seefeld  of  the  Educational  Department 
of  the  Prussian  Ministry  of  Commerce  and  Industry  sent 
out  a  circular  in  which  he  states  the  ideals  of  the  govern- 

[158] 


WELFARE  OF  WORKING   YOUTH   IN   GERMANY 

ment:  "Over  against  the  overpowering  influence  to  which 
continuation  school  pupils  are  subjected  day  by  day  in  the 
workshop  and  in  the  circle  of  their  older  associates,  the 
educational  influence  of  the  continuation  school  cannot  be 
of  far-reaching  effect  so  long  as  it  is  limited  to  the  four  to 
six  hours  per  week,  which  the  young  people  as  a  rule  devote 
to  them.  The  most  important  problem  of  the  continuation 
schools  will  always  be  the  educational  one,  and  for  this  reason 
their  influence  cannot  be  limited  to  the  time  of  school  in- 
struction, but  they  must  strive  outside  school  hours  to 
secure  the  confidence  of  the  youth  entrusted  to  them.  This 
problem  must  be  attacked  with  all  the  more  earnestness 
where  the  industrial  youth  do  not  live  in  the  parental  home. 
The  problem  is  to  gain  a  definite  and  decisive  influence  over 
the  industrial  youth  during  their  free  time.  The  problem  is 
not  to  compel  the  young  people  to  conduct  themselves  in  a 
perfectly  proper  manner  for  a  few  hours  per  day,  but  to 
secure  a  voluntarily  accepted  influence  over  them  all  the 
time.  This  principle  must  guide  us  in  the  creation  and  care 
of  welfare  organizations. 

"First  the  arrangements  for  the  care  of  these  youth 
must  be  free  from  outward  compulsion.  The  imposing  of 
any  kind  of  compulsion  would  generate  among  the  youth 
an  inner  opposition  that  would  often  lead  to  the  opposite 
of  wished-for  results.  The  interest  in  these  welfare  insti- 
tutions cannot  be  secured  by  outward  compulsion,  but  must 
be  the  result  of  the  fact  that  they  adjust  themselves  wisely 
to  the  nature  and  inclinations  of  the  youth,  that  they  unite 
themselves  in  efforts  to  secure  for  the  young  people  oppor- 
tunities for  amusement  in  their  free  time  when  they  can  be 
happy  with  their  associates.  These  efforts  we  must  try  to 
guide  into  right  channels.  The  more  success  we  have  in 
this,  the  more  certain  will  be  the  voluntary  participation  of 
the  youth,  and  the  sooner  the  way  will  open  for  the  earnest 
moral  influence  of  the  educator. 

"It  will  often  contribute  to  the  success  of  these  wel- 
fare organizations  if  the  continuation  school  pupils  are  per- 
mitted to  take  part  in  their  control.  I  see  no  objection  to 

[159] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


this,  but  regard  it  as  an  advantage  if  the  welfare  organiza- 
tions are  based  upon  unions  formed  among  the  pupils  for 
the  purpose  of  the  common  control  of  the  organizations 
intended  to  further  their  interests.  Of  course  the  educators 
and  teachers  of  the  continuation  schools  must  take  part  in 
these  unions. 

"This  cooperation  of  teachers  and  pupils,  when  it  is 
carried  out  without  narrowmindedness  and  with  wise 
understanding  of  the  nature  and  ways  of  youth,  will  con- 
tribute to  the  forming  and  strengthening  of  a  mutual  con- 
fidence between  teachers  and  pupils  that  will  bear  good  fruit 
for  both. 

"Every  attempt  at  uniformity  and  every  bureaucratic 
scheme  must  be  kept  out  of  these  organizations.  Their 
plans  must  adjust  themselves  in  a  many-sided  way  to  the 
local  and  industrial  peculiarities  of  the  youth,  and  must 
change  with  the  time  of  the  year.  In  the  summer  time  the 
first  place  will  usually  be  given  to  physical  exercise  of  every 
kind,  including  turning,  play,  sport,  or  excursions.  No 
other  arrangements  are  so  well  suited  to  foster  among  the 
youth  a  fresh,  happy  disposition  and  an  inclination  to  be 
satisfied  with  a  reasonable  application  of  his  superfluous 
powers.  In  winter  physical  exercise  must  to  some  degree  be 
given  up,  although  we  have  skating  and  other  winter  sports. 
Arrangements  should  be  made  which  will  enable  young 
people  in  their  free  time  on  Sunday  afternoons  and  evenings 
to  meet  in  some  pleasant  spot  and  enjoy  one  anothers' 
society,  and  places  should  be  provided  where  suitable 
entertainments  can  be  held. 

"Student  homes  and  clubs  are  very  helpful  and  should 
be  a  part  of  the  supplemental  organization  of  every  system 
of  vocational  schools.  Special  emphasis  should  be  placed 
upon  providing  young  people  with  good  reading.  Special 
school  libraries  should  be  provided  for  the  larger  continua- 
tion schools.  But  in  smaller  communities  it  will  be  possible 
for  the  teacher  to  awaken  an  interest  in  young  people  for 
good  reading  and  to  point  out  to  them  places  where  they  can 
secure  good  books." 

[160] 


WELFARE  OF  WORKING  YOUTH  IN  GERMANY 

In  the  report  of  the  National  Industrial  Educational 
Commission  of  Prussia  for  1912  are  found  the  following 
figures,  showing  the  results  accomplished  in  the  year  1910. 
In  that  year  there  were  373,546  pupils  in  the  continuation 
schools,  196,834  of  whom  enjoyed  the  benefits  of  the  welfare 
work. 

Physical  Care  School* 

Turning 448 

Athletic  sports,  running  games  (Turnspiel) 542 

Swimming,  skating,  etc.  (Sport  Ubungen) 142 

Bathing  and  swimming 142 

Excursions 566 

Rowing 2 

Prize  turning  and  long  distance  running 3 

EDUCATION,  INSTRUCTION  AND  ENTERTAINMENT 

Lectures 491 

Visiting  places  of  interest 336 

Entertainments 134 

Pupils'  homes 112 

School  festivals 373 

Instruction  in  first  aid 149 

Theatrical  performances 9 

Exercise  in  singing 10 

Entertainment  evenings 7 

Various  arrangements 9 

Besides  these  there  were  693  small  libraries,  with  189,473 
volumes.  There  were  68,799  borrowers  of  these  volumes, 
using  407,455  books.  There  were  37  advisory  stations  for 
vocational  guidance  and  77  savings  banks.  In  the  savings 
banks  in  Berlin  alone  there  were  deposited  59,731  marks. 
These  are  provided  with  an  automatic  arrangement  for 
depositing  money  and  giving  and  checking  cards,  which 
makes  this  work  easy  for  the  teachers. 

The  famous  decree  of  Jan.  18,  1911,  with  reference  to 
Jugendpflege  is  simply  the  result  of  previous  private  and 
community  work  in  Germany.  The  various  chambers  of 
commerce  and  industry  have  long  been  supporting  such 

[161] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


institutions.  The  communal  authorities  have  been  granting 
them  rooms,  playgrounds,  and  financial  support.  The 
state  authorities  of  various  provinces  have  now  begun  to 
take  part  in  the  movement,  and  everywhere  private  associa- 
tions have  been  organized  to  cooperate  in  it.  The  action  of 
the  Ministry  of  Education  was  only  a  further  step  in  the 
same  direction.  The  decree  is  too  long  to  quote,  but  it  is 
an  attempt  to  assemble  and  organize  the  scattered  move- 
ments, often  without  any  connection  with  one  another,  and 
not  seldom  rivals  and  opposing  movements,  into  an  organiza- 
tion of  all  for  the  welfare  of  youth,  carried  on  with  a  uniform 
point  of  view.  The  function  of  the  State  is  to  support 
existing  organizations  so  far  as  they  are  worthy,  to  further 
and  supplement  them  in  a  financial  way,  and  to  induce 
communities  and  districts  to  make  sacrifices  for  the  move- 
ment. 

The  action  of  the  Ministry  has  been  successful  in  stimu- 
lating interest  and  activity  in  this  work.  Within  a  year 
nearly  all  the  provinces  of  Prussia  have  organized  for 
carrying  on  the  movement,  so  that  state,  communal,  and 
church  authorities  and  private  associations  of  all  sorts  are 
working  together  for  the  youth.  From  April  1  to  December 
1,  1911,  in  27  governmental  districts  the  number  of  youth 
receiving  such  care  increased  from  469,937  to  560,489,  an 
increase  of  over  19  per  cent. 

The  decree  appealed  to  all  classes  of  people  to  interest 
themselves  in  the  movement.  The  work  had  suffered  in 
the  past  from  well-meaning  but  poorly  prepared  leaders. 
The  State  set  about  to  remedy  this  by  instituting  courses 
for  training  persons  for  this  work  of  leadership.  In  the 
year  1912  there  were  held  434  courses  of  this  sort  with  an 
enrollment  of  about  22,139,  11,755  of  whom  were  teachers. 
Finally,  the  State  has  instructed  the  State  Training  School 
for  Teachers  to  take  up  the  preparation  of  persons  for  this 
work.  The  dilettanteism  of  former  years  is  being  uprooted, 
and  well-prepared  leaders  are  being  put  at  the  head  of  the 
movement.  Only  the  State  can  successfully  attack  such  a 
task. 

[162] 


WELFARE  OF  WORKING   YOUTH   IN   GERMANY 

In  America  we  have  been  doing  many  kinds  of  welfare 
work  for  the  youth.  Some  of  it  has  been  excellent  and 
should  not  be  disturbed  except  to  improve  it;  but,  as  in 
Germany,  it  has  been  impossible  to  reach  all  who  should 
be  benefited  by  it.  The  introduction  of  compulsory  voca- 
tional schools  in  some  states  has  made  it  possible  to  attack 
the  whole  problem  there.  Europe's  experience  would  in- 
dicate that  the  continuation  school  is  the  key  to  this  whole 
great  movement. 

The  argument  from  Germany  has  been  made  to  stim- 
ulate attention  to  this  problem,  not  to  urge  mere  imitation 
of  their  plans.  We  should  be  influenced  by  the  experience 
of  others,  but  we  must  deal  with  our  own  problem  in  accord- 
ance with  American  conditions.  It  is  high  time  that  we 
give  thoughtful  attention  to  the  welfare  of  our  working 
youth;  mere  vocational  efficiency  is  not  enough.  As  in  our 
ordinary  schools,  we  must  deal  with  "the  whole  boy,"  and 
give  the  working  boy  and  girl  between  fourteen  and  eighteen 
the  social  and  other  advantages  that  we  now  put  at  the 
disposal  of  the  high  school  student.  Our  public  high  schools 
have  done  a  great  work,  not  alone  on  the  side  of  intellectual 
progress,  but  on  the  social  side,  in  a  large  sense;  they  have 
helped  to  break  down  social  barriers  and  have  given  the 
ambitious  in  all  walks  of  life  a  chance  equal  to  that  of  the 
most  favored.  But  not  all  the  ambitious  have  had  this 
chance;  only  those  who  have  aimed  at  the  professions  or  at 
administrative  positions  have  had  a  higher  education 
freely  open  to  them,  with  all  the  collateral  advantages  that 
go  with  such  an  education.  The  rest  of  the  boys  and 
girls,  far  more  numerous  and  less  favored,  need  these  ad- 
vantages all  the  more, — a  chance  for  a  better  and  broader 
education  along  the  lines  they  themselves  have  chosen,  and 
the  richer  and  happier  life  of  body  and  spirit  that  young 
people  of  all  walks  should  have  an  opportunity  of  winning 
for  themselves.  This  is  the  problem  that  in  Germany  has 
been  given  the  special  name  of  "  Jugendpflege" — the  great 
problem  of  the  welfare  of  youth. 

[168] 


CHAPTER  XI 

RESUME  OF  REPORT  OF  SWEDISH  ROYAL 

COMMISSION  ON  ELEMENTARY 

TECHNICAL  INSTRUCTION 

In  1907  the  Swedish  government  appointed  a  commission  to  investigate  the 
subjects  of  advanced  and  lower  industrial  education  in  Sweden  and  foreign  coun- 
tries. They  spent  five  years  in  the  investigation  and  submitted  their  reports,  the 
one  on  elementary  industrial  education  in  three  large  volumes,  in  1912.  The  in- 
vestigation covered  all  the  countries  of  Europe  having  a  system  of  such  schools, 
as  well  as  the  United  States  and  Canada. 

The  Swedish  government  has  already  acted  on  one  of  the  reports  and  the 
author  saw  continuation  schools  in  Stockholm,  organized  on  the  Munich  plan,  in 
the  winter  of  1913-14. 

The  author  met  Dr.  Hjalmar  Lundbohm,  one  of  the  commission,  while  in 
Stockholm,  and  has  had  translated  for  American  readers  portions  of  the  report 
on  elementary  technical  instruction  selected  by  Mr.  Lundbohm  as  containing 
the  fundamental  findings  of  the  commission. 

BEFORE  1850  the  only  technical  instruction  of  any 
kind  in  Sweden  was  given  in  the  Technological  In- 
stitute in  Stockholm,  the  Chalmers  Sloyd  School  at 
Goteborg,  and  the  mining  school  at  Falun — all  of  which 
were  secondary  schools. 

It  was  L.  J.  Wallmark,  the  director  of  the  Technological 
Institute,  who,  October  9,  1850,  proposed  a  remarkable  plan 
for  introducing  a  uniform  system  of  elementary  technical 
schools,  under  a  separate  board  of  management,  in  addition 
to  Sunday  and  evening  schools  for  workmen  and  apprentices. 

In  pursuance  of  this  plan  about  half  a  dozen  elementary 
technical  schools  were  founded  as  well  as  Sunday  and 
evening  schools  for  special  lines  of  work. 

In  1872  a  commission  was  appointed  to  reorganize  these 
schools,  and  by  the  end  of  the  decade  important  changes 
had  been  made.  For  one  thing,  the  elementary  technical 
schools  were  not  required  after  1877  to  prepare  pupils  for  the 
intermediate  technical  schools.  For  another,  such  academic 
subjects  as  were  taught  during  the  second  half  of  the  three- 

[164] 


REPORT  OF  SWEDISH  ROYAL  COMMISSION 

years'  course  were  taught  in  immediate  connection  with  the 

technical  work. 

In  1878  the  State  began  to  subsidize  these  schools,  and 

since  that  time  they  have  increased  considerably  in  number, 

and  individual  schools  have  added  more  departments  of 

work. 

But  the  percentage  of  attendance  is  still  very  small  when 

compared  with  the  figures  for  other  countries.    Compare  the 

number  of  pupils  in  the  elementary  technical  schools  per 

thousand  inhabitants,  in  the  following  list: 

Prussia 9.2 

Baden 8.3 

Belgium 7.8 

Denmark 9.6 

Sweden 2.6+ 

The  amount  of  money  granted  by  the  State,  per  1000 
inhabitants,  is  as  follows: 

Baden $104.00 

Austria 76 . 00 

Prussia 68.00 

Netherlands 56.00 

Denmark 47 . 00 

Finland 40.00 

Norway 39 . 00 

Sweden 24 . 00 

In  Munich  alone  --a  city  of  only  about  560,000  in- 
habitants —  as  much  money  is  spent  on  vocational  educa- 
tion as  is  given  to  the  whole  system  of  elementary  technical 
training  in  Sweden. 

It  is  astonishing  that  so  little  should  have  been  done  in 
this  direction  when  the  enormous  industrial  development  of 
the  last  thirty  years  is  considered.  In  1908  there  were  more 
than  four  times  as  many  factories  as  in  1879.  Their  value 
was  more  than  ten  times  as  great,  and  they  employed  almost 
six  times  as  many  workmen. 

It  is  true  that  the  State  subsidies  to  elementary  technical 
schools,  during  this  period,  increased  from  $59,481  to  $127,- 

[165] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


690.56  —  more  than  doubled.  But  in  Prussia,  during  the 
twenty-five  years  from  1885  to  1909,  such  subsidies  had 
increased  from  $142,500  to  $2,875,000  —  that  is,  had  be- 
come almost  exactly  twenty  times  as  much. 

Very  few  men  with  any  degree  of  technical  training  ob- 
tained in  Swedish  schools  are  employed  in  Swedish  industries. 
In  factories,  the  commission  found  only  one  to  every  four 
factories  and  126  workmen;  in  the  timber  business,  one  to 
34  plants  and  more  than  900  workmen;  in  mines,  one  to 
every  60  workmen.  As  many  technical  experts  are  needed 
in  all  these  lines,  it  appears  at  once  that  this  proportion  is 
astonishingly  small.  More  than  ten  per  cent  of  the  techni- 
cal experts  employed  in  industrial  pursuits,  especially  in 
sugar  factories,  breweries,  dye  works,  and  electro-technical 
shops,  have  been  trained  in  foreign  technical  schools,  while 
in  the  cloth  mills,  the  leading  industry  of  Sweden,  which  in 
1908  had  an  invested  value  of  $49,950,000,  almost  all  posi- 
tions of  responsibility,  both  technical  and  executive,  were 
held  by  foreigners. 

From  these  facts  the  Commission  concluded  that  either 
technical  training  in  many  lines  of  industry  was  not  given 
at  all  in  Sweden,  or  else  it  did  not  meet  the  requirements  of 
the  present  day. 

The  weakness  of  the  system  was  due  to  the  fact  that  it 
had  remained  almost  stationary  since  its  reorganization 
nearly  forty  years  ago.  Then  emphasis  was  laid  on  educa- 
tion that  was  broadly  technical,  and  prepared  only  in  a 
very  general  way  for  any  kind  of  industrial  work,  while 
elementary  technical  schools  in  other  countries  almost  with- 
out exception  were  organized  as  special  schools  for  particular 
trades  and  industries. 

For  example,  such  continuation  schools  as  have  existed 
are  almost  academic  in  character.  The  majority  of  the 
students  study  arithmetic,  Swedish,  writing,  bookkeeping, 
and  drawing,  and  technical  training  is  quite  in  the  back- 
ground. 

The  elementary  technical  schools  made  the  mistake  of 
admitting  pupils  immediately  from  the  elementary  schools, 

[166] 


REPORT  OF  SWEDISH  ROYAL  COMMISSION 

before  they  have  any  experience  in  industrial  work,  and  while 
they  still  have  no  idea  to  which  branch  of  it  they  mean  to 
devote  themselves.  Accordingly,  the  work  is  so  planned 
that  the  pupils  may  afterward  take  up  any  line  they  please. 
All  the  emphasis  in  teaching  is  laid  on  basic  subjects,  such 
as  mathematics,  physics,  chemistry,  and  drawing,  and 
although  there  are  technical  classes  in  the  second  half  of 
the  course,  the  pupils  give  only  from  one-fifth  to  one- 
fourth  of  their  time  to  such  work.  Consequently,  at  the 
end  of  the  three  years'  course,  they  are  still  badly  prepared. 

Even  in  the  Art-Trades  School  in  Stockholm  the  teach- 
ing is  still  general,  and  technical  training  in  arts  and  crafts 
is  given  only  to  a  very  limited  extent. 

The  only  technical  schools  worthy  of  the  name,  the  two 
mining  schools  at  Filipstad  and  Falun,  the  textile  school  at 
Boras,  and  the  building-  and  machine-trades  departments  of 
the  Stockholm  school,  have  been  greatly  hampered  by  the 
lack  of  proper  equipment. 

No  measures  for  training  teachers  have  been  adopted. 
The  technical  instruction  is  given  by  common  school  teach- 
ers, who,  from  the  very  nature  of  their  own  training,  cannot 
be  expected  to  understand  the  practical  requirements  of 
vocational  education. 

There  is  no  central  authority  and  no  uniform  method  of 
inspection  in  the  Swedish  system.  School  boards  have  al- 
most unrestricted  freedom  in  planning  the  schedules  at 
their  own  discretion.  More  than  one  hundred  different 
subjects  are  listed,  although  it  is  clear  that  the  same  sub- 
jects, or  different  parts  of  the  same  subjects,  often  go  under 
different  names.  The  school  boards,  in  their  desire  to  please 
everyone,  have  added  one  subject  after  another  until  the 
original  purpose  of  the  school  is  quite  set  aside. 

The  only  inspection  work  is  done  by  the  director  of  the 
Stockholm  school,  in  addition  to  his  many  other  duties;  and 
the  entire  sum  spent  for  it,  aside  from  hotel  and  traveling 
expenses,  amounts  to  $243.00  a  year.  That  such  inspection 
could  not  have  much  effect  is  obvious. 

The  plan  proposed  by  the  Commission  proceeds  from 

(1871 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


the  hypothesis  that  elementary  technical  training  must  be 
broadened  and  developed  until  we  can  guarantee  to  the 
majority  of  workmen  of  all  kinds  a  technical  education  suited 
to  their  abilities. 

It  is  not  a  satisfactory  state  of  affairs  when  only  the 
leaders  of  industry  receive  an  adequate  training.  The 
strong  competition  of  the  present  time,  as  well  as  social  prog- 
ress, makes  it  both  necessary  and  just  that  workmen  also 
should  be  carefully  trained  for  their  occupations. 

The  Commission  thinks  that  the  representatives  of 
professional  and  industrial  interests  should  be  guaranteed  a 
controlling  voice  in  the  conduct  of  elementary  technical 
education,  and  that  the  State,  while  it  subsidizes  private 
enterprise  in  this  work  of  extending  education  to  all,  should 
exert  its  authority  to  the  end  that  the  system  shall  fulfill 
its  mission,  and  progress  with  the  needs  of  the  times. 

The  lack  of  technical  training  in  our  continuation  schools 
may  be  explained,  in  the  first  place,  by  the  fact  that  we  are 
still  practically  lacking  in  up-to-date  supplementary  schools, 
and  that  such  as  we  have  are  very  little  attended  by  young 
workmen  who  have  just  left  the  elementary  school. 

By  the  time  they  are  old  enough  to  realize  what  technical 
education  could  do  for  them,  they  have  forgotten  the  greater 
part  of  what  they  learned  in  the  elementary  school;  and 
when  so  much  time  has  to  be  given  to  the  review  of  elemen- 
tary subjects,  they  are  easily  discouraged  from  attendance, 
and  quickly  lose  interest  in  the  work. 

To  remedy  this  condition  of  things,  the  first  course  in 
the  continuation  schools  should  be  so  planned  that  the  young 
workman,  while  he  is  learning  his  trade,  shall  fix  and  supple- 
ment his  elementary  school  knowledge  by  applying  it  to  the 
actual  problems  that  come  up  in  the  course  of  his  work. 

Accordingly,  the  Commission  would  divide  vocational 
training  into  two  sections : 

I.    Elementary  Continuation  or  Trade  Schools  (Idrlings- 
skolor)  (for  boys  just  out  of  the  elementary  school). 

II.    Advanced  Continuation  Schools  (Yrkesskolor)   (for 
older  workmen). 

[168] 


REPORT  OF  SWEDISH  ROYAL  COMMISSION 

(These  two  groups  of  schools  are  to  arise  from  a  reor- 
ganization of  the  old  general  continuation  schools  in  such 
a  way  that  the  first  shall  help  boys  from  fourteen  to  seven- 
teen to  apply  their  elementary  school  knowledge  towards 
the  learning  of  a  trade,  while  the  second  shall  give  training 
of  a  more  technical  character  to  workmen  over  seventeen.) 

As  it  is  clear  that  no  elementary  continuation  or  trade 
schools  can  serve  their  purposes  unless  attendance  is  com- 
pulsory, the  Commission  would  make  it  obligatory  for  all 
young  people  between  fourteen  and  eighteen  who  are  em- 
ployed in  factories  and  workshops,  but  at  the  same  time, 
not  to  trench  too  greatly  upon  the  work,  would  limit  the 
instruction  to  only  a  few  hours  a  week. 

In  this  way  the  pupils  will  make  use  of  their  elementary 
knowledge;  the  majority  will  be  guaranteed  a  minimum  of 
technical  training;  and  a  foundation  will  be  laid  for  more 
advanced  technical  work  in  an  advanced  continuation  school. 
It  should  even  be  possible  for  advanced  continuation  schools 
to  organize  technical  courses  with  fixed  schedules  in  special- 
ized lines  of  work,  and  so  become  real  technical  schools  in 
these  lines. 

The  Commission  aims  to  bring  into  existence,  side  by  side 
with  theoretical  instruction,  a  kind  of  practical  elementary 
training  that  shall  bear  the  same  relation  to  the  higher 
technical  schools  as  the  academic  courses  that  prepare  for 
them. 

Further,  the  Commission  holds  that  a  nine-year  academic 
course,  together  with  a  three-  or  four-year  secondary 
technical  course,  is  not  the  best  possible  training  for  men 
holding  positions  of  responsibility  in  industrial  work.  What 
they  need  rather,  as  the  first  essential,  is  much  actual  ex- 
perience, combined  with  sound  theoretical  training  but 
never  for  any  length  of  time  interrupted  by  it. 

The  same  kind  of  training  should  also  be  best  for 
draughtsmen,  laboratory  assistants,  and  for  men  in  a  host 
of  other  industrial  and  commercial  positions  that  call  for 
much  experience  as  well  as  extensive  knowledge. 

To  introduce  technical  training  of  this  sort  and  to  meet 

[169] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


the  many  new  technical  demands  for  which  our  present 
system  of  schools  lacks  equipment,  the  Commission  holds 
that  these  schools  must  be  either  reorganized  or  replaced 
by  real  technical  schools  for  special  trades  and  industries, 
such  as  the  mining  schools  at  Filipstad  and  Falun,  and  the 
building-  and  machine-trades  departments  of  the  technical 
school  in  Stockholm,  each  of  which  is  limited  to  its  own 
special  field  in  industry. 

Such  schools  the  Commission  proposes  to  call  Technical 
Schools  for  Special  Trades  and  Industries  (tekniska  fack- 
skolor). 

On  much  the  same  principles,  a  plan  has  been  worked 
out  for  the  reorganization  of  the  technical  school  in  Stock- 
holm into  a  school  of  arts  and  crafts  on  an  industrial  basis. 

To  train  teachers  of  vocational  subjects,  to  supply  text- 
books and  models,  to  test  materials  of  instruction,  and  to 
furnish  a  good  practice  school  for  vocational  education,  a 
state  normal  school  for  vocational  education  should  be 
established. 

To  give  the  representatives  of  professional  and  industrial 
interests  a  controlling  voice  in  the  conduct  of  these  schools, 
and  so  in  the  management  of  the  entire  system,  all  such 
schools  in  future,  as  well  as  those  already  established,  shall 
be  under  the  supervision  of  local  boards  on  which  industrial 
interests  should  have  much  stronger  representation  than 
they  have  usually  had  in  the  past. 

The  Commission  is  convinced,  as  a  result  of  their  in- 
vestigations, that  very  little  headway  can  be  made  with 
vocational  education  until  the  system  is  placed  under  a 
strong  central  authority.  It  therefore  does  not  hesitate 
to  return  to  the  plan  proposed  by  Wallmark  in  1850,  and 
again  by  the  Commission  of  1872,  but  never,  to  the  great 
hindrance  of  technical  education,  carried  out:  namely,  that 
the  vocational  schools  should  be  under  a  separate  board  of 
control. 

To  sum  up,  the  system  of  elementary  technical  schools  in 
Sweden  should  consist  of  the  following: 

Elementary  Continuation  or  Trade  Schools. 

[170] 


REPORT  OF  SWEDISH  ROYAL  COMMISSION 

Advanced  Continuation  Schools. 
Technical  Schools  for  Special  Trades  and  Industries. 
The  Technical  School  at  Stockholm  reorganized  as  a 
school  of  arts  and  crafts. 

The  State  Normal  School  for  Vocational  Education. 
The  National  Board  of  Control  for  Technical  Schools. 

Elementary  Continuation  or  Trade  Schools  should  be 
of  three  kinds: 

1.  Industrial  Continuation  Schools,  which  aim  to  com- 
plete, from  a  theoretical,  and  as  far  as  possible  practical, 
standpoint,  the  apprentice  training  that  can  be  obtained  by 
working  at  a  trade  or  industry. 

2.  Full-time  Trade  Schools,  which  aim  to  give  a  complete 
apprentice  training,  practical  as  well  as  theoretical. 

3.  Trades  Preparatory  Schools,  which  aim  to  prepare  for 
apprenticeship. 

For  the  present  the  Industrial  Continuation  School* 
must  do  most  of  the  work;  but  in  certain  cases  there  is  room 
for  both  the  others. 

The  Industrial  Continuation  School  assumes  that  the 
practical  training  is  obtained,  for  the  most  part,  by  actual 
work  in  factories  or  workshops.  To  secure  this,  an  appren- 
tice law  is  needed,  which  shall  see  to  it  that  the  practical 
training  is  carried  out  properly.  For  the  present  it  must 
be  the  task  of  the  community  to  watch  over  and  guide  its 
young  people  during  the  years  so  important  for  their  de- 
velopment, immediately  after  they  have  left  the  elementary 
school. 

Communities  should  be  authorized  by  law  to  make 
regulations  for  trade  schools  at  which  attendance  shall  be 
compulsory  for  all  young  people  between  the  ages  of  fourteen 
and  eighteen,  who  are  employed  in  factory  work,  handicraft, 
or  any  similar  occupation;  and  employers  must  be  obliged 
to  give  their  employees  time  for  going  to  school,  and,  to- 
gether with  parents  and  guardians,  should  see  to  it  that 
school  is  attended. 

The  school  work  should  usually  be  given  for  from  six  to 

[171] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


twelve  hours  a  week,  with  an  average  of  eight;  and  it  should 
continue  for  three  years. 

The  pupils  should  be  divided,  as  far  as  possible,  into 
sections  according  to  the  kind  of  work  they  are  doing,  and 
the  instruction  should  be  adapted  to  the  special  needs  of 
each  section.  When  necessary,  school  workshops  should  be 
added. 

Full-time  Trade  Schools  are  more  expensive  to  establish 
and  maintain,  as  they  need  completely  equipped  workshops. 
Moreover,  the  students  cannot  afford  to  attend  them  for 
three  or  four  years,  as  they  would  be  unable  to  support 
themselves  during  that  time.  The  Commission  recommends 
these  only  for  very  special  cases. 

Trades  Preparatory  Schools  are  more  practicable.  They 
assume  that  the  training  shall  be  begun  in  school  shops  and 
shall  be  continued  and  completed  in  workshops  or  factories. 
The  schools  must  vary  for  different  trades  and  industries,  and 
should  be  established,  when  the  need  of  them  is  felt,  by 
cooperation  between  employers  and  the  National  Board  of 
Control  for  Technical  Schools. 

The  Advanced  Continuation  Schools  should  aim  to 
give  workmen  of  good  practical  experience  the  chance  to 
broaden  and  deepen  the  training  for  which  the  foundation 
was  laid  in  the  trade  school,  and  to  acquire  the  utmost  pro- 
ficiency in  their  line  of  work.  By  this  means  they  increase 
their  skill  and  their  earnings,  and  the  way  is  open  to  them 
to  become  foremen,  or  to  hold  other  responsible  positions, 
or  to  set  up  for  themselves  independently  as  masters  of  a 
craft. 

The  choice  of  subjects  in  these  schools  should  not  be  left 
altogether  to  the  pupils  themselves.  While  single  courses  of 
a  general  character,  which  the  pupils  may  take  as  they 
please,  cannot  be  altogether  omitted,  the  teaching  should  be 
planned,  as  far  as  possible,  to  continue  along  definite  lines 
of  work,  with  fixed  schedules  to  be  followed  within  a  specific 
time  and  required  of  all  who  take  the  courses. 

Vocational  courses  should  be  planned  as  evening  courses 
when  they  are  attended  exclusively  by  workmen;  as  day 

[172] 


REPORT  OF  SWEDISH   ROYAL  COMMISSION 

courses  when  more  consecutive  time  is  needed,  or  when  they 
are  the  centers  for  certain  lines  of  work  within  a  district 
(or  a  large  part  of  a  district),  or  when  evening  courses  for 
other  reasons  are  not  suitable. 

For  entrance  to  such  courses,  previous  experience  in 
some  line  of  work  must  be  the  first  essential.  They  are  not 
a  means  for  people  with  little  or  no  vocational  experience 
to  get  by  a  short  cut  a  superficial  and  incomplete  training  in 
a  trade. 

For  admission  to  the  general  courses,  at  least  two  years 
of  vocational  experience  should  be  required,  and  for  entrance 
to  the  vocational  courses,  three.  The  minimum  age  should 
be  seventeen,  and  some  knowledge  of  reading,  writing,  arith- 
metic, and  drawing  should  be  required. 

The  instruction  should  be  grouped  about  the  following 
subjects:  Swedish,  economics,  and  technical  instruction. 
The  last  should  include  practical  work  whenever  it  can  be 
suitably  provided. 

The  Technical  Schools  for  Special  Trades  and  Industries 
should  aim  to  give  the  technical  information  which,  as  well 
as  industrial  experience,  is  needed  by  those  in  charge  of 
workshops,  factories,  and  other  places  where  industrial 
work  is  carried  on,  and  by  designers,  draughtsmen,  and 
laboratory  assistants.  Further,  they  should  give  men  en- 
gaged in  business  or  manufacturing  the  information  about 
certain  branches  of  school  instruction  which  they  need  for 
their  pursuits. 

The  Commission  proposes  that  the  elementary  technical 
schools  in  Norrkoping,  Malmo,  Orebro,  Boras,  and  Hfir- 
nosand,  and  the  building-  and  machine-trades  schools  connect- 
ed with  the  technical  school  at  Stockholm,  and  the  textile 
school  at  Boras,  shall  be  changed  to: 

Three  technical  trade  schools  for  machine-trades,  one 
in  Stockholm,  one  in  Malmo,  and  one  in  Orebro. 

Two  technical  trade  schools  for  building-trades,  one  in 
Stockholm,  and  one  in  Malmo. 

One  technical  trade  school  for  road  construction  and 
waterworks  in  Norrkoping. 

[173] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


One  technical  trade  school  for  the  textile  industry  in 
Boras. 

One  technical  trade  school  for  cloth  finishing  in  Ha'r- 
nosand. 

It  proposes  also  the  establishment  of  the  following : 

One  technical  trade  school  for  the  chemical  industry  in 
Helsingborg. 

One  technical  trade  school  for  the  wood-,  cellulose-,  and 
paper-industry  in  Karlstad. 

In  the  mining  school  at  Falun,  a  section  for  the  training 
of  master-moulders. 

For  entrance  to  these  schools,  at  least  two  years  of  ex- 
perience, acquired  chiefly  in  working  at  some  trade,  should 
be  necessary. 

The  theoretical  requirements  for  admission  must  not  be 
too  hard  for  intelligent  and  ambitious  young  workmen  who 
have  had  no  chance  to  study  for  an  academic  education; 
but  must  otherwise  be  adapted  to  a  severe  thinning  out  of 
candidates. 

The  Commission  thinks  that  these  requirements  should 
be  equivalent  to  the  work  done  in  the  secondary  academic 
school*  in  the  basic  subjects;  namely,  Swedish,  mathematics, 
physics,  chemistry,  and,  for  certain  trades  also,  drawing 
and  sketching. 

The  Commission  thinks  that  the  course  should  be  short, 
consisting  usually  of  two  years  of  forty  weeks  each,  with 
from  forty  to  forty -four  hours  a  week. 

The  instruction  in  each  school  or  section  of  a  school 
should  be  limited  to  one  branch  of  industry,  and  should  be 
carried  on  with  strict  reference  to  the  practical  purpose  of  the 
school.  The  application  of  technical  theory  must  continue 
to  be  the  chief  aim  and  must  take  most  of  the  time.  The 
basic  theoretical  subjects,  such  as  mathematics,  physics, 
chemistry,  etc.,  must  be  regarded  as  strictly  auxiliary  in 
giving  the  necessary  principles  for  the  study  of  the  technical 
subjects. 

*Equivalent  to  the  first  two  years  of  our  high  school. 

[174] 


REPORT  OF  SWEDISH   ROYAL  COMMISSION 

These  schools  should  be  suitably  equipped  with  libraries, 
up-to-date  laboratories,  and  collections  of  materials  for  study. 

The  Technical  School  in  Stockholm  should  be  thoroughly 
reorganized.  The  building-  and  machine-trades  sections, 
and,  to  some  degree,  the  technical  evening  and  Sunday 
school  for  women,  should  be  enlarged.  The  art  work 
should  be  carried  on  in  two  sections:  an  Art-trades  School, 
planned,  in  the  main,  on  the  same  lines  as  other  vocational 
schools,  and,  for  advanced  work,  a  School  of  Arts  and  Crafts, 
with  which  a  section  for  the  training  of  drawing  and  writing 
teachers  can  be  combined. 

The  School  of  Arts  and  Crafts  should  include  the  follow- 
ing sections: 

1.  Furniture  making. 

2.  Sculpture  and  modeling. 

3.  Ceramics  and  glass-making. 

4.  Smithing  and  engraving. 

5.  Gold  and  silver  work. 

6.  Book-making,  printing,  and  poster  work. 

7.  Textile  arts. 

8.  Decorative  painting. 

Each  section  should  be  under  the  direction  of  a  pro- 
fessional teacher  (man  or  woman) ;  but  the  final  control  and 
the  responsibility  for  the  kind  and  quality  of  work  must 
rest  with  the  director  himself. 

The  school  must  be  equipped  with  studios  and  labora- 
tories, and  the  instruction  should  be  mainly  practical,  with 
a  view  to  awakening  the  pupil's  artistic  feeling  and  taste, 
making  him  familiar  with  the  technique  of  his  work,  and 
giving  him  a  thorough  understanding,  on  the  basis  of  his 
own  experience,  of  the  adaptability  of  his  designs  to  the 
materials  and  to  the  purpose  for  which  they  were  intended. 

The  State  Normal  School  for  Vocational  Education  should 
be  founded  in  order  that  the  State  may  take  over  a  portion  of 
the  vocational  training  which  would  otherwise  fall  upon  the 
city  of  Stockholm.  It  should  be  planned  to  serve  as  an 
institution  for  training  teachers  and  as  a  practice  school  for 
vocational  education.  It  should  include  trade  schools  and 

[175] 


VOCATIONAL  EDUCATION 


other  vocational  schools  for  most  kinds  of  work  which  are 
extensively  carried  on  in  our  country. 

The  training  of  teachers  must  provide  for  the  person 
who,  either  through  long  practice  of  a  trade,  or  by  attendance 
at  a  vocational  school,  or  in  some  other  way,  has  obtained 
a  good  knowledge  of  vocational  theory  and  practice.  He 
should  be  allowed,  in  a  shorter  course  of  eight  weeks,  to  hear 
and  see  vocational  training  given  on  a  model  plan;  and  he 
himself,  while  he  is  completing  his  vocational  training, 
should  be  given  the  chance,  under  suitable  guidance  and 
criticism,  to  take  part  in  the  teaching. 

Normal  school  teachers  should  help  in  the  training  of 
teachers,  and,  in  connection  with  their  work,  should  aid 
the  Board  of  Control  in  plans  for  organization,  textbooks, 
and  the  collection  of  models,  and  for  the  testing  of  materials 
used  in  instruction. 

The  National  Board  of  Control  for  the  Technical  Schools 
should  consist  of  a  chief  with  four  assistants  and  the  neces- 
sary office  force. 

This  board  should  be  empowered  to  carry  out  the  new 
organization  of  the  system  of  elementary  technical  schools 
and  to  watch  over  and  direct  its  further  development. 

The  appointment  of  such  a  board  must,  therefore,  be 
the  first  step  toward  reform. 

SUPPORT  OF  THE  SCHOOLS 

Continuation  schools,  both  elementary  and  advanced, 
must  belong  to  the  community.  The  State,  however,  must 
on  certain  conditions  contribute  to  their  support  as  follows: 

1.  Two-thirds  of  the  amount  paid  in  salaries  to  teachers 
and  directors. 

2.  From  five  per  cent  to  ten  per  cent  more  of  the  State 
subsidy  granted  on  this  estimate  toward  the  supply  and 
upkeep  of  materials  used  for  instruction. 

3.  Two-thirds  of  the  cost  of  the  original  stock  of  such 
materials. 

The  Technical  Schools  for  Special  Trades  and  Industries 
must  be  supported  by  the  State;  but  the  community  in  which 

[176] 


REPORT  OF  SWEDISH   ROYAL  COMMISSION 

each  school  is  established  must  provide  the  building  and  a 
house  (or  the  money  for  it)  for  the  director. 

The  Technical  School  in  Stockholm  must,  after  its  re- 
organization into  a  school  of  arts  and  crafts,  be  entirely 
supported  by  the  State. 

The  State  Normal  School  for  Vocational  Education  must  be 
a  national  institution,  to  the  support  of  which,  however, 
the  city  of  Stockholm  must  pay  a  suitable  contribution. 

The  annual  cost  of  our  present  system  of  elementary 
technical  schools  amounts  now  to  about  500,000  kronor 
($135,000).  According  to  the  plan  of  the  Commission,  this 
would  be  increased  to  1,200,000  kronor  ($324,000)  a  year, 
and  900,000  kronor  ($243,000)  of  initial  outlay,  besides  the 
cost  of  buildings. 


177J 


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